Honor Bound: The 125th Hunger Games
by FreshBreathofAir
Summary: The Quarter Quell has rolled around once again, and the Capitol is looking for something... special. This year's twist will be like none before it, and the Gamemakers have pulled out all the stops. *SYOT Open, spots almost filled!*
1. The Reading of The Card

I am ready. The fifth Quarter Quell is about to be announced, and of course I know what it is. I, in actuality, searched through all the cards to find the perfect one for this year. Everyone will be shocked when I read it to the entire country.

"And now," the announcer, Soren Wylle, says. "Welcome your president, Mairi Fallow!"

I walk onto the stage, acknowledging the thunderous applause of the Capitolite audience assembled to learn of this years twist. "Thank you," I say, silencing the roaring crowd. "Let's begin. In the beginning of the Hunger Games, the creators ordained that after every twenty-five Games there would be a Quarter Quell, to keep the rebellion fresh in the district's minds and to celebrate Panem's prosperity. During the first Quell, the districts were to vote on who would enter the arena, to remind them that it was their choice to engage in war."

The crowd nods at this, remembering. That was the year that 14 year old Syara Hamilton won. She was from District Nine, and many expected her to die early.

I continue. "In the second Quell, to remind the districts that two district citizens died for every Capitol citizen, the districts were to send twice as many tributes as usual."

District Twelve saw its second victor that year, with Haymitch Abernathy. He hadn't seemed to be much different than many of the 12 boys, so it was surprising when he won. Sadly, he turned to drink soon after his Victory Tour.

I quickly get through the third Quell, which was to reap only those between the ages of nine to fourteen, and the fourth, which was to have two separate Games, with the girls in one and boys in another. The victors of both were then made to fight each other.

"And now, we begin the celebration of the fifth Quell," I say. I pull the alloted card from the box, took the card from the envelope, and read. "For the fifth Quarter Quell, to remind the districts that the young are not spared from war, one boy and girl from each district between seven and eleven years old will be reaped in addition to tbe normal twenty-four. They will be paired with the girl or boy from their own district of their gender. If both survive to the end, both may win."

Finally done, I replaced the card. The crowd roared its approval. Every one of them was eager to see these forty-eight children die, each in a more gruesome way than the last.

I fully intended to give them what they wanted.

 **Hey! So, I'm creating a SYOT. Its going to be fairly simple, and I hope you all enjoy.**

 **A few notes, before I give you the template. You all will only be able to create characters for the 12-18 year olds. This is to save the story from being riddled with sweet innocent seven year olds without a care in the world except rainbows and butterflies. You will be able to give their name and age, but thats all.**

 **Your child CANNOT be a relation, unless you message me at my email, which I will disclose at the end.**

 **With that, here is your template.**

 ** _Name:_**

 _ **Age:**_

 ** _Gender:_** (Please don't be complicated about it. Just say girl or boy. You can give sexual orientation details in the personality section)

 _ **Name of Child:**_

 ** _Age of Child: (_** seven to eleven, remember ** _!)_**

 _ **Description of Child:**_ (Personality, looks, friends, whatever you want to tell me about them)

 _ **District:**_

 ** _Appearance:_**

 ** _FaceClaim:_** (Just a name, please, unless they're really obscure or someone you personally know. You can also give one for the child if you have one)

 ** _Personality:_** (Just a quick five or six sentence paragraph is fine, unless you have a lot of details)

 ** _History/Backstory:_**

 ** _Significant Family Members:_** (No need to tell me about Great Aunt Josephine, who was twice removed on your fathers sisters cats side. Yes I know that's impossible, but you get it, right?)

 _ **Best Friend(s):**_

 _ **Reaped or Volunteer:**_ If Volunteer from a non-Career district, give reason).

 _ **Reaping Outfit:**_

 _ **Visitors:**_

 ** _Token:_**

 _ **Trainimg Focus:**_

 ** _Alliance?:_**

 ** _Private Session:_**

 ** _Training Score:_**

 _ **Interview Outfit:**_

 ** _Preferred Weapon:_**

 ** _Physicaal Strengths:_**

 ** _Physical Weaknesses:_**

 ** _Mental Strengths:_**

 ** _Mental Weaknesses:_**

 ** _F_** ** _inal 8 Material or Bloodbath?_**

 ** _Any Strategy?_**

 _ **Anything Else?:**_

That's it! Please submit in a PM! I look forward to yearing from you lovely readers!


	2. District One Reaping: Immortals

**AN: Hello everyone! So I am sure all who are in this have been anxiously waiting for this, the initial chapter of Honor Bound. District One is a Career District, so we have some fierce competition here. For our young ladies, we have seventeen year old Velvetina Silvette and nine year old Belle Russeu. For our young men, we have eighteen year old Nero Blaster and eleven year old Wacky "Wax" Cosmos. All four are pretty interesting, so hopefully we have a great first chapter. Hope you enjoy, and please make sure to review!**

Chapter One: Immortals

 _They say we are what we are_

 _But we don't have to be_

Immortals, FallOut Boy

 _Velvetina "Tina" Silvette, aged 17_

The morning of the reaping was bright and sunny, the kind of morning that always kind of annoyed Velvetina. It was as if the sun was a child, shaking her furiously awake, dragging her from the comfort of her bed. Everyone who knew Tina very well knew that she was not a morning person. The number of people who really knew her, however, was very few. The number was actually one, and that was her mother.

However much the sun annoyed Tina, she had to get up anyway. Her mother always got up around this time, and she always wanted a cup of warm tea when she woke up. Tina got up and dressed in the clothes she'd worn to training yesterday, and quietly walked through the house to the kitchen. The dishes clanked as she grabbed the teapot from the cabinet and filled it with water.

While she waited for the water to boil, Tina walked into my mother's bedroom. The light was shining through her mother's curtains as it had through hers, and her mother's sleeping figure lay small and frail under the thin covers. Last night had been a bad night. Tina had woken up at three in the morning to her mother having violent convulsions.

" _Mom!?" Tina exclaimed, rushing into the bedroom, wanting to cry at the scene that was before her. Her mother, who, until the previous year, had been extremely healthy and strong for her only child, was now covered in vomit, burning tears streaming down her face._

 _Tina ran immediately to the telephone, and called her mother's doctor._

" _Yes, hello? Doctor Hanlon?" Tina's voice was shaking as she spoke. "M-mom's throwing up- it's horrible, please come quickly!"_

 _Doctor Hanlon was a kind man who had tried to treat her mother since her diagnosis, or rather, non diagnosis. They didn't know what she had._

 _The two of them had sat with her mother for an hour while she threw up, repeatedly emptying the trashcan she was using, and finally supporting her to the toilet and holding her hair back from her face. Finally, it had stopped, and they helped her back into bed with a glass of water and clean clothes._

" _Isn't there anything you can do, Doctor?" Tina asked him as he was about to leave. "You-you said that there was possibly something the last time we talked?"_

" _I'm afraid not, my dear," Doctor Hanlon had answered. "I did look into it, after our last meeting. This disease isn't very well known, as there are not very many cases of it. The only possibility would be something from the Capitol, but they aren't going to do that for just anybody. You'd have to be-"_

" _A Victor," she had interrupted him, realizing what that would mean. She would have to be a Victor to get any kind of help for her mother. And that would mean she would need to be the volunteer tomorrow. "I'd have to win the Games."_

" _Well, yes," Doctor Hanlon agreed, taken aback at her immediate realization. "But- you're not thinking about volunteering, are you? You only started training last year! You're nowhere near ready."_

But Tina didn't care. She needed to get help for her mother, and the only way she could do that was by winning the Hunger Games. Her family wasn't one of the wealthiest in the district, and so she couldn't afford any treatment on her own. But if she was a victor, she could use most of her winnings to get her mother to a good hospital in the Capitol that knew what they were doing.

Finally, the tea was finished. Tina poured the warm liquid into her mother's favorite mug and carefully brought it to the bedroom.

"Mom?" Tina whispered, setting the mug on the table and giving her mother a few gentle shakes to wake her up. "It's morning. Time to get up, I've got to go to the reaping in a few hours."

Her mother stirred slightly, and turned to her daughter with a watery smile. "Morning, sweetheart." Tina remembered how her mother's voice sounded before she got sick. Shimmer Silvette had a beautiful voice, which Tina thought was prettier than any birds song. Now, her voice was barely a croak, and it pained Tina to hear it.

"Morning," Tina said, picking up the tea and giving it to her mother, who carefully grabbed it and began to drink some of it. Tina sat at the edge of the bed. She hadn't yet told her mother her plan to volunteer, and it was becoming more and more necessary by the minute.

Finally, she couldn't stand it anymore. "Mom, I decided I'm going to volunteer. I arranged for you to go stay at Doctor Hanlon's while I'm gone, and when I come back, I can take you to the Capitol and they can treat you."

Shimmer stared at her daughter for a few moments before she spoke. "Sweetheart, I know you're trying to help, but don't go to desperate measures just on my account. If it's my time, I will be ready to go."

"I have to-" Tina started, but her voice broke with emotion. She tried so much not to feel things, but this was one thing she could not ignore. Her mother was the only person she really cared about, and she wasn't going to let her die if she could help it. She didn't have to finish her sentence, because her voice was full of all the things she couldn't say.

They went on with their morning routine almost as if nothing had happened. Only a couple times did Shimmer attempt to talk her daughter out of taking the desperate measure of volunteering, and she finally gave it up.

Eventually, the time to get ready for the reaping arrived. Tina dressed in a plain white blouse that showed off her collarbone, and a flaring black skirt that went down to her ankles and covered her combat boots. She bent down to lace up her combat boots, and glimpsed something shining under her dresser. She flattened out on the floor and reached for it, pulling out a silver locket. It was round, with intricate flowers engraved on it. Unfastening the clasp, Tina saw the picture inside. It was her mother, around the same age as she was now. They looked so much alike, it was hard to tell them apart. The only difference, as far as Tina could tell immediately, was that Shimmer had gray eyes, and she herself had greenish-blue eyes, which she obviously got from her nonexistent father.

Tina fastened the clasp back, and looped the locket around her neck. She was going into the Hunger Games, and she would win. She would save her mother. She had to.

* * *

 _Nero Blaster, aged 18_

Nero stood in front of a huge crowd. It was the last auction of the morning, and he was already getting a little hoarse. Of course, that was to be expected. After all, shouting at breakneck speed was no easy feat. Nero was used to it, however. He had been helping out at the auctions since he was nine, and had been allowed to run some of them since he was fourteen.

"150 dollars!" he exclaimed, as yet another person raised the bid. This was an antique chest of drawers, and he assumed it was nowhere near done. "Anyone willing to go 175? 150… 150…" Surprisingly, no one was raising the bid.

"I'll go 175," a quavering voice said. Nero spotted to source, and grinned. Jazahara Key was ninety-four years old, and she came to the auction every time that Nero was running it. She never remembered his name, but she did remember his face, which was pretty good for six years shy of one hundred.

"You don't have that money, Jaz," Marcus retorted, laughing. "Anybody want to go 200?"

Finally, Marcus' friend Wavy Thowers ended up with the chest. "Ma told me to get it, pay whatever was needed to get it."

"Sure, man," Nero teased. " Next time I'm over, I'll find it in your room, no doubt."

"Get out of here," Wavy grunted, annoyed, as he wheeled the chest away. "Big day ahead, eh? Volunteering?"

"Yep," Nero said, proud of the fact. "Top marks on all the exams."

It had been a little bit of a shock when he'd discovered that he had done well enough to be the Volunteer. However, he didn't complain. He would be more than ready to take down any tribute in his way. This year would be a little different, with the younger tributes, but he would still win. He knew it.

Finally, once he had helped the last customer load their purchases, he made his way home. He was immediately assailed by the sound of loud music as he entered his house. His brother, Nitro, was blasting some type of loud music, taking his time alone for all it was worth. He was glad his room was soundproofed as he entered. The previous year, his parents had anticipated that Nitro would become a nuisance with that music, and had soundproofed their bedroom, as well as Nero's.

Nero quickly dressed, as he only had thirty minutes to get ready, and it took fifteen to get to the square.

Once he was ready, he banged on Nitro's door before entering. Immediately, the music stopped.

"I hope you're ready," Nero said, examining his brother, who was clearly not ready. "We need to leave in ten minutes."

"Yeah, yeah," Nitro brushed it off. "I'm not going into the Games, anyway. _You're_ volunteering, or so I thought."

"That doesn't matter, " Nero told him. "It's the law, and you know it. Get ready."

Nitro grumbled, but got into some decent clothes. Finally, the two of them set off for the square.

Arriving at the already packed square, Nero made sure Nitro signed in properly before signing in himself.

Passing the sign in area, Nero went to the 18 year olds section. Spotting Wavy their other friend, Halicarnassus, Nero made his way to stand beside them.

After a few minutes, the Capitol escort came onto the stage and did her introduction. Wyna Elmery was pretty young, but being from the Capitol, she could have been as old as Jazahara.

Finally, Wyna ended her spiel with, "Happy Hunger Games, and may the odds be ever in your favor!"

* * *

 _Belle Russeu, aged 9_

Belle stood among a group of her friends, who were all nervously waiting. As much as she hoped it would be someone else, someone _not her_ , she knew it had to be someone. The odds weren't in anyone's favor this year.

There were four bowls this year, and everyone watched with bated breath as Wyna picked from the bowl for the first girl tribute. Wyna called out the name loud and clear.

"Desire Wilmott, please come up!" Wyna called across the square.

The chosen girl, a fifteen year old with pale white skin and blond braids, quivered nervously as she stood onstage. She had to know there would be.a volunteer, and sure enough, an older girl stepped forward.

This girl was not the usual District One tribute. She had red hair that framed her face in a frizzy mess. Her eyes were kind of pretty, but by no means gorgeous. She was kind of short, and not very intimidating to look at.

"What is your name, dear?" Wyna asked her, seemingly making the same judgements that Belle had.

"I'm Tina Silvette," the girl answered. "I'm eighteen years old.

"Very good, very good," Wyna smiled, returning to draw a name from the second bowl. She read the name, and Belle could hardly believe her ears.

"Izabelle Russeu!"

A couple of her friends stared at her, so she knew she hadn't heard the name wrong. She didn't cry, though. Belle had never been a whiny girl, and she wasn't going to start now. As a path formed before her, she walked up to the stage. She knew she probably wouldn't win, unless Tina Silvette turned out to be more skilled than her looks led one to believe.

"It's just Belle, FYI," Belle remarked as she stood beside Tina. Wyna looked at her, surprised that she had spoken.

"Er- very well, _Belle,_ " Wyna was very good at hiding her thoughts, but not good enough. "Anything else...or can I continue?"

" Oh, I suppose," Belle said, pretending to be bored. Wyna decided not to comment and moved to draw the first boy. As was expected, a Volunteer came up, a tall, brutish boy.

"I'm Nero Blaster," he introduced himself. "I am proud to be your tribute!" he seemed to be a strong, confident type, which Belle didn't really care for.

Wyna went to the final dish and drew the name of the younger boy tribute.

"Jupiter Dahl," was the name that Wyna called out. The boy who came up was around Belle's age, but she didn't recognize him. But almost before Wyna could ask, a boy called out the two irrevocable words:

"I volunteer!"

Belle could tell that the boy who had been reaped was relieved. He went back to his spot, and another boy took his place. This boy was vastly different. For starters, he was black. Not that Belle thought anything of it, but in District One, people of color were few and far between, and so most people at least noticed when there was one. He seemed to be underweight, and his muscles, if he had any, were hidden underneath his bright yellow polo shirt.

"Would you tell us your name?" Wyna asked the boy.

"Wacky Cosmos," he answered, a shakiness in his tone. His voice was small, and almost reedy. "But I mostly just go by Wax, if that's okay? I'm eleven."

The reaping was finished, and Wyna motioned for them to shake hands. Belle grasped Wax's hand, which was surprisingly warm as they shook.

Then, they were finally led into the Justice Building. Belle knew she was probably going to die, but she would be able to see her family one last time.

* * *

 _Wacky "Wax" Cosmos, aged 11_

Wax couldn't believe what he had just done. _He had volunteered for the Games! At eleven years old!_ He had basically just signed his own death certificate when he'd said the words, "I volunteer."

He was now sitting in a would be comfortable room in the Justice Building. That was mostly due to the fact that this would probably be his last time in District One outside of a wooden box.

He knew why he'd done it. He had intended to do it next year, but when the opportunity came to escape his adoptive mother, Voltra, and her two annoying daughters, a whole year earlier, he had done it without really thinking.

 _Even dying will be better than staying with her,_ Wax told himself. Dying would be better than the half-life he lived with the Cosmos.

Soon, his first visitor came. Xiekelia Lorphong was Wax's training partner and best friend at the Training Academy, and his exact opposite. Where he was quiet and reserved, Lia was loud and outgoing. They were pretty evenly matched, she perhaps a little more skilled than he. He knew that, when she was old enough, she intended to volunteer.

"Hey, Wax," she called as she entered. She was quite a bit more subdued than usual, but Wax appreciated her respect for the occasion.

"Lia, you've… changed," Wax said, pretending to be dumb about the situation. "Are you okay?"

Lia rolled her eyes, replying, "Shut up, dumbass. You know what's at stake here, right?"

Wax quit his act. When Lia was serious, something was really wrong. "Well, let's see," Wax began. "Well, for starters, my life."

"Exactly," she said, jumping straight to the point as usual. "So, why in the world did you volunteer? I know your mom rags on you a lot, but it's not worse than dying, is it?"

Wax had never told anyone the extent of Voltra's abuse. Only his school friend Jeru, his other friend at the Academy, Tysium, and Lia knew anything, and the most he'd let slip was that she yelled at him a lot and sometimes gave him a couple smacks, and the former was only because he couldn't hide his reddened face.

He needed to tell someone the whole truth, before he left. He said nothing, but slowly lifted his yellow shirt so Lia could see his back. The most recent marks from Voltra's belt stung as the cold air touched.

Lia let out a gasp as she realized what the scars meant. "Oh my gosh, Wax! Why the hell didn't you mention this before?"

"I didn't want you to get involved," Wax explained, pulling his shirt back on. "I know I was being stupid. But now you know why, I don't want you to tell anyone."

"How can I not tell anyone, Wax?" Lia demanded. "I can't just let her get away with this! What if she adopts another kid, and treats them like you?"

Wax had already thought of that. "I'm not going to let her get away with it. I have a plan, but you have to pretend to be ignorant, or she might try to get to you."

" Okay," she said, seeming even more worried. "I really just came to give you this." She handed him a long stick of red wax.

Wax examined it, noticing that there were a bunch of yellow stars along the middle. It was interesting, the exact thing Wax liked.

"Thanks, Lia," Wax said. "Now I guess you better go before you're forced out."

The two embraced tightly. "Good luck, Wacky Cosmos," she said.

Lia left the room, with a quick glance back at him. Wax sat down in one of the comfy seats in the room, tapping his feet with nervous energy.

His visits with Tysium and Jeru were both fairly quick, and then his visits were done. At least he'd assumed so. He hadn't been expecting his final visitors.

He was surprised as his adoptive sisters, Magmina and Aquazia, came in.

"What do you guys want?" Wax asked them. They had never actually done anything horrible to him. He had tried to hang out with them, but they were inseparable, and he always felt like a third wheel. Eventually, Voltra had forbade him to have any contact with them aside from when they had meals together.

"We want to apologize," Magmina said. She was the same age as Wax. They were only a few weeks apart. "We should have tried to stop Mom from hitting you."

"She told us to stay away from you because you might contamy-contama- oh, Maggie, what was the word?" Aquazia was only nine, and not the sharpest knife in the drawer.

"Contaminate?" Wax finished the word. "Hang on, how did you know she hits me? She always waited until you were gone."

"We didn't watch every one, but a lot of them we eavesdropped on," Magmina replied, a bit of a grin on her face. She never gave you bandages or anything. A few times, when you were just sitting there, crying, I wanted to go help you. I _should_ have. I'm sorry, Wacky."

Magmina looked like she was going to cry, and Aquazia didn't seem much better.

"We're all young," Wax said. "You didn't understand that Voltra was wrong. But now you do. I suppose I can forgive you, since I'm about to die."

He awkwardly embraced Magmina, and then they too had to leave, leaving Wax alone with his thoughts.

He would make Voltra sorry before he died.

 **AN: Wow, that's a long chapter! I think it's the longest I've ever written, around 3.5K long. Hopefully the length is worth something. Enjoy, and please review!**

 **Here are some questions for you reviewers:**

 **Who do you like best, Tina, Belle, Nero, or Wax?**

 **Should Tina have volunteered or was she reckless?**

 **Is Nero too confident, or is he justified?**

 **Will Belle's snark and sarcasm be a help or hindrance?**

 **What should Wax do to expose Voltra?**

 **So right now, I need no tributes. I have 12 open because even though I have a submission, I am not sure If I want to use him. Feel free to submit a 12 Male sheet and he will be considered. You can also give submissions for 10M and 8F, but the people who reserved the spots will recieve first consideration once they have submitted.**

 **AERIE, BLOWING OUT!(I like that, I think I'll use that as my signoff from now on!)**


	3. District Two Reapings: Numb

**Welcome to the next chapter in Honor Bound! We're now in District Two, where the most loyal Capitol supporters live. This district is also a Career District, and they usually end up leading the pack. Do we have anyone like that today? We have Calaena Galis and Persephone Salind for our two young women, who were created by Dreaming of far away, and for our men we have Marcus Vippina and Leo Dallwoods, created by 66samvr. I really like most of these characters, but I think I have a soft spot in this district for Marcus. Let's see how everyone is preparing for this Reaping Day.**

 **Also, I forgot to credit the creators of the previous characters. Tina and Belle were created by Girl With a Flower Crown, and Nero and Wax were created by Platrium.**

 **Enjoy the second Chapter! Sorry it took so long!**

District Two Reapings: Numb

 _Every move that I make is another mistake to you_

 _Every second I waste is more than I can take._

Numb, Linkin Park

* * *

 _Persephone Salind, aged 11_

Persephone woke to the shouts and yells of her parents. Carlos and Melody Salind were once again having a row. This was often how Persephone woke up, so she was used to it. Turning to the clock on her bedside table, she realized it was already eleven o'clock. She only had an hour and a half before she needed to be at the reaping.

Jumping out of bed, she quickly dressed and rushed downstairs. She ignored her parents in the living room, opening the refrigerator and grabbing a glass of juice and a donut. She finally went into the kitchen, where she leaned down to tie the laces of her converse. She couldn't do anything but hear her parents argument.

"You missed work again!?" Melody yelled. "You lazy ass. Why did I ever marry you? All I got out of it was a worthless daughter and a son who got himself killed."

Persephone had known it would be coming, but it didn't hurt any less. They always compared her to Marcus, which she completely hated. It made her feel insignificant and small underneath her parents disdainful gazes. She supposed, however, that this was the point. These days, the only thing her parents were in agreement on was that Marcus had been one hundred times better than she ever would be.

"Well, that's not surprising, is it," Carlos grunted. "She never did do anything worth notice. My work kicked me off the shift. I've got to go find something else tomorrow."

"No you won't!" Melody shouted. "You're just going to sit on the couch tomorrow, and _I'll_ have to work double time at the mine."

Saying nothing, Persephone slipped out of the house unnoticed. Jogging down the road, she scanned the path for anyone in her way. This was the part of the day she always looked forward to: when she could be herself.

Of course, her version was a little different than someone else's would have been. Her eyes landed on a girl leaning down drawing something in the dirt. Reaching her, Persephone rubbed it out with her shoes and gave her a snide grin.

Finally, Persephone arrived at her friend Irana's house. Irana was one of her followers, who helped her harass other kids, and they were fairly close. At least, as close as Persephone would ever let anyone get to her.

"Ready for the reaping?" Irana asked her as she entered. "Who do you think will get picked?"

Persephone had been contemplating this for a while, and had long made her decision. "I am."

"Hold on, what?" she questioned. "What are you talking about?"

"I'm going to volunteer, Irana," Persephone told her. "I can win, easily."

"Persi, hold on a minute," Irana cautioned. "You're not thinking about this. Do you have a death wish?"

Persephone didn't answer her, but simply muttered, "That's a possibility."

She was going to volunteer for this years' games, and she would prove to her parents that she was as good as Marcus. No, she would show them that she was better than he had ever been. _She would win the Games_

* * *

 _Marcus Vippina, aged 16_

The afternoon of the reaping found Marcus Vippina at the Training Academy. He had a feeling that he knew why he had been called over, but he didn't want to think about it for the moment.

Of course, this was mostly impossible to do. Marcus had always been a worrier, and that was something he couldn't help. Most of the guys at school or the Academy would joke whenever he started to show nerves, so he had decided that he didn't want to bother with them. The only one of them who never mocked him or teased him when he got that way was Praim Titam.

As he kept walking, attempting to distract himself, he passed by a familiar house. There was really nothing special about it. It had a decently shingled roof, clapboard siding painted a pale green, and a few bright looking windows. It looked like a homey little place, and yet Marcus steered clear of it. As he passed, a vivid memory flashed across his consciousness like a full HD camera.

" _You can't keep doing this, Atlas!" Marcus exclaimed at the boy, or rather, man, walking beside him. "This isn't something to joke about. Mom and Dad wanted you to stop, so what's the deal? Do you want to kill yourself?"_

" _Marcus, I can't just act like an invalid," Atlas Vippina responded, seeming to be under control. "I won't just go without a fight. If I keep training, my body gets stronger. Then the cancer will leave, and I'll be fine." However confident Atlas may have sounded, Marcus knew he was deluding himself. He was trying to prove that he could still do everything he normally did._

" _That's not how it works, and you know it!" Marcus retorted. "The doctor said you don't need to overexert yourself, and that training so much would only run you down and...and…"_

 _Marcus could not continue as his voice shook and a few burning tears escaped. The unfinished sentence hung in the air, the ending of it haunting the brothers._

" _I won't be a burden on you guys," Atlas said firmly. "The only way I'll stop is if I am physically unable, which I currently am not. I'm fine, I'll be able to go and win the Games, and then we can afford a real cure."_

 _The boys continued on their way home, mostly in silence. Atlas was quiet, but kept moving, so Marcus was surprised when he abruptly stopped._

" _At-" Marcus began, but then the thing that the whole family had secretly feared happened. Right before his eyes, Marcus saw his brother crumple to the ground like a paper sack._

" _Atlas!" Marcus screamed. His mind was racing. What should he do? Marcus scanned around the street, his eyes landing at a house across the street. It was painted a pale green color which Marcus would ordinarily have found nice, but now it almost made him sick. Almost not thinking about it, he ran across the street and banged on the door._

" _Hello?" a woman, who Marcus vaguely recognized but could not name. "I'm sorry, we don't buy-"_

" _Can I use your phone?" Marcus gasped out. It was all he could do to keep from panicking, which would render him speechless and stiff as a robot. "I-I need to make a call, it's really urgent. My brother collapsed-" He could not get out anymore, and took in a huge lungful of the cool evening air._

" _Of course," she said, staring dumbfounded at Marcus. He couldn't blame her, he'd probably act the same if someone had banged on his door at eight in the evening asking for the phone. "Come in."_

 _Marcus entered the house, and followed her to the phone. He dialed the first number he thought of, which was his house phone._

" _Mom- mom, it's Atlas-"_

 _His parents had come, and with the help of a couple nearby residents, they had gotten him into their car. They went to the only hospital in District 2, and Atlas was taken straight into the emergency room._

 _The long hours they spent there were nothing short of torture for Marcus. No one would tell them anything, simply saying that when there was a change in Atlas' condition, they would notified. Marcus remembered wishing that Praim could have come, but the hospital was too far away and the Titams didn't own a car._

 _At four thirty-seven a.m the next morning, a young nurse came to tell them the news._

" _He didn't make it," she said, her head bowed solemnly. "I'm so sorry."_

It had been exactly a month since that night, and Marcus still thought about it several times a day. It kept replaying in his mind, and he kept thinking that there had to have been something he could have done to save Atlas. He knew it was really foolish, as even trained doctors and nurses hadn't been able to do anything. The knowledge still didn't stop the thoughts.

Finally arriving at the Academy, Marcus made his way to where he knew the instructor be.

The office he entered was small, but liked it. However, he didn't marvel.

"Hello, Marcus." Krain Denu was a hardened looking man. Marcus always wondered what had made the creases on his face look so much like scars. However, looks could be deceiving, and Denu was no exception. The instructor of District Two's academy was a gentle man who took care to train his students with razor sharp precision in something they were good at. "First, may I offer my sincere condolences for the passing of Atlas? I know it was a hard blow on your family."

"Thank you," Marcus accepted. He had grown used to hearing similar words the past few weeks, and so this was almost an automatic response. "What is this meeting about?"

Denu took a moment to speak, seeming to ponder how to word what he wanted to say. "I -meaning we, the Academy- have decided that you will replace Atlas as the volunteer for this years Games."

Marcus did not know what to say. He had trained, of course, but he didn't have the skill and precise aim that Atlas had. He was definitely the most skilled in his age group, but there were plenty of the older boys who had beaten him in practice.

He knew he could not decline. While it was a tragedy, losing Atlas had lost the Vippinas much of the local favor they had. That favor was a result of Atlas' selection as volunteer, and when he died, even though many tried not to, honor was big in District Two, and the Vippinas had lost a lot when they lost Atlas. If he accepted, he would bring back the favor his family had gained. And if he won…

Marcus had been thinking for a whole minute, and Dean's voice was what brought him back. "Well? Will you volunteer, or will there be no Victor for District Two this year?"

With only a moment's hesitation, Marcus gave his answer.

"Yes. Yes, I'll volunteer."

* * *

 _Leo Dallwoods, aged 10_

Leo bounced up and down with nerves as he stood in the crowd of ten year olds. Most of the younger kids were balls of nervous energy, and he was no exception. Next to him stood his brother, Zene.

"You alright, little bro?" Leo asked his brother, giving him a playful nudge.

"We're twins," Zene reminded him. "I'm not your little anything."

"You're six and a quarter minutes younger than me," Leo said. "That makes me older."

"So what?" Zene shrugged. "We'll be okay. There are plenty of other kids that could get picked."

The reaping started fairly quickly. The escort hurried onto the stage, glowering at one of the cameramen as she began her speech. "Happy Hunger Games, and may the odds be ever in your favor. Let's begin with the ladies."

She went to the first bowl on the stage, and picked a name from the bowl. "Heina Killian."

As expected, one of the older girls volunteered for Heina. She was pretty enough, with long dark brown auburn hair and clear gray eyes that scrutinized the whole scene.

"I'm Calaena Galis," she introduced herself. Her outfit and hairstyle gave her a very gladiator-like look, and Leo supposed that she would end up being the leader of the Career pack this year. "Eighteen years of age."

The escort picked another name for the younger girls. The girl who came up was nine, and seemed scared out of her mind. It didn't seem like there would be any volunteers, and then a girl raised her hand up and came up onto the stage. She looked like a little doll, and seemed kind of like an innocent kid. "Persephone Salind, but call me Persi." Leo knew better than to believe her act, though. He knew Persephone from school. She was a year older, and always found it amusing to harass the younger kids.

Next was the older boy, who was also a volunteer. He seemed a little younger than the usual male volunteers that Two saw, but looked at least like he had a fighting chance, as well as the ability to possibly hide. "Marcus Vippina," he said in response to being asked his name.

And finally, the younger boy was to be reaped. The escort picked out a couple of names. Leo watched her drop one of the slips of paper, as she walked back to the podium and read the name.

"Zene Dallwoods!"

Leo looked around wildly at his brother, who had gone very pale. Beads of sweat grew on his cheeks, and Leo knew that Zene was terrified.

And yet, he couldn't volunteer. _I have to!_ But he couldn't speak the words. Instead, he walked up onto the stage, saying nothing as he walked up. _Stupid, stupid._

What had he gotten himself into? He was pretending to be his brother? Was that illegal or something? Would he be in trouble if he got caught. _You can't get caught._

He was in the Games. And he was going in as his brother.

* * *

 _Calaena Galis, aged 18_

Calaena sat on one of the cushioned seats in the room she'd been escorted to in District Two's Justice Building. It was meant to deceive, to lull entrants into letting their guard down. She wasn't going to let herself be distracted. She had to come home, or she'd dishonor her mother, and her district. If she won, her mother would not need to work in the mines six days a week to support them. They would be rich and have a home in the Victor's Village.

"Ten minutes," a Peacekeeper said, opening the door. Calaena looked towards the door to see her mother quickly enter. She did not cry, but had a cautious smile on her face, one that seemed to be preparing for something.

"Cally," her mother murmured. They tasted the words, slowly, as if it might be the last time it was spoken.

"Mom, it will be fine," Calaena reassured her, as she had done many times before now, ever since she'd known she would be chosen. "I'll be back in a few weeks, and I'll be a victor."

Calaena knew her mother didn't really want her to do this, but it was too late now, and had been for a while. Vera Galis knew how her daughter felt about it, and supported her in any capacity needed.

"You're extremely smart," she began. "You know you can't trust anyone, even your alliance. Be very careful, get a bit of extra training, and win and come home to me."

Calaena could not speak, and so merely nodded. The odds were in her favor, certainly, but that meant nothing if there were connivers and sneaks. She would not be able to let her guard down for a second, because that second could mean death.

"I know," she got out. It seemed to be enough.

Their ten minutes were coming to a close, and when the Peacekeeper came to announce time over, her mother began to sob, and Calaena simply hugged her. It was all she could do. It was heart wrenching to see her mother, always so strong, a red-eyed mess being forced from the room.

A few minutes passed, and the door was opened once again. Two girls entered, and Calaena was glad to see her two best friends entering the room.

"Luna, Tabby," she breathed, feeling relief at seeing them. It was as if tension had been released, and she was able to breathe easier knowing that she was able to see her friends one more time.

"Hey, Cal," Tabitha had a wan smile, which was a rarity. Tabitha was always serious, but aloof. She never related well to anyone unless she was fighting them. Calaena supposed that's why they got on so well. "You know you can win this. You've trained since you were six year old."

That much was true, at least. She most likely had the most training of any of the tributes this year. That could be a very good thing, or a very bad thing.

"Please, just stay safe!" Luna said, worry coming through every fibre of her. Luna was always the excited one. They had met in kindergarten, when Luna had decided that they would be friends, and pestered her until they had become so. They never fought with each other, except for one argument about whether she should accept and volunteer for the Quell. "Even if you have to leave the Careers, it's better than getting yourself killed."

"Remember how to splint a broken leg?" Tabitha asked her. "What's the first step?"

"Don't move the leg unless absolutely necessary," Calaena answered. It was one of many pop questions Tabitha had sprung on her in the last few weeks, to prepare her for the Games.

"Good," she said. "You can win. In any problems, just remember we're rooting for you every second."

"We have something for you," Luna said. She pulled something out of her pocket, and placed it in Calaena's palm. She examined what had been placed there. It was a silver charm bracelet, with fish pendants dangling from it.

"Thanks, guys," Calaena said, clipping it onto her wrist.

"It's not just a bracelet," Tabitha told her. "It's a weapon."

Calaena stared at it, intrigued. "There's a little button on the backs," Luna began. "If you push them, a small compartment opens, and there's poison in them. I don't know what's in them, but they're all supposed to be deadly or close to it."

"Wow, thanks," Calaena said, staring at it. "But how am I going to get this in? It'll be confiscated if someone finds out."

"No one will think to push the buttons," Tabitha assured her. "And if they do, they'll probably just clear out the poison and give it back to you. In that case, you still have a stylish bracelet."

"Just stick with, 'they won't think to look,'" Luna stated firmly.

The door was opened, and the Peacekeeper entered the room. "Time's up, come on."

"You can do it," Tabitha told her, giving one final embrace. "Good luck." Tabitha walked out, and Luna remained.

"I know you'll win," she said. "Calaena Galis, you had better come back. I will never forgive you if you don't."

"Don't worry, I'm coming back," Calaena said. "Besides, you'll probably pester me even in death. I'd never escape you!"

"Precisely," Luna agreed. "Good luck, and I'll see you soon, victor."

Luna finally left, and the door was closed. Calaena knew she would receive no other visitors. Who else would come? None of her other training friends cared about her enough to come by, and her dad had never been a part of her life, so why would he start now?

 _Let the Games begin,_ she thought. _I'm ready._

 **So sorry it took so long to make this, but I have an explanation! I made you guys something to enjoy! It's a video, with all the cahracters on it. I'm going to work on a blog soon, but this I thought would be a little something you guys would like! watch?v=xzUJFX5crrI. Enjoy, and review!**

 **Here are your chapter questions...**

 **Do you think Persephone will get what's coming to her, or is she justified in her actions?**

 **Will Marcus be the first to die of the Careers, or is he hiding a secret weapon that could be the tipping point for him?**

 **Will Leo be discovered, or do you think he can pull of the act?**

 **Will Calaena's token be a helpful item, or will it be the cause of her own death?**


	4. Oops!

So the link for my video got partly cut out, so I'm posting it again. youtube watch ? v = xzUJFX5crrI

Just remove spaces and add a . Ater youtube.

 **EDIT:** **youtube watch ?v = xzUJFX5crrI**

 **Any issues, just search Introducing Your Tributes Honor Bound on Youtube.**


	5. District Three Reapings: It's Time

**Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving! I hoped to get this out before the holiday, but that didn't happen. Nevertheless, here it is, ready for your eyes to read!**

 **Welcome to District Three, home of the next four tributes. We have Marie Stein and Xena Sedala for our young women, who were created by Girl With a Flower Crown. Thanks for the submissions! For our guys, we have Quest Warez and Tek Palmer, made by AnnLiberty. More thanks than I can count! Right now, Quest seems to be my favorite, but let's see what happens when I write them! Stay safe everyone, and happy reading!**

District Three Reapings: It's Time

 _It's time to begin, isn't it?_

 _I get a little bit bigger, but then I'll admit_

 _I'm just the same as I was_

 _And I'm never changing who I am._

It's Time, Imagine Dragons

* * *

 _Quest Warez, aged 15_

Quest awoke to one of his sisters jumping up and down on the foot of his bed. He couldn't tell which one it was, but he had an idea. Blinking the sleep out of his eyes, he opened them to see a blur of pink. Of course, he thought. Twain wouldn't jump all over the bed at this hour. Bradi had been the more likely candidate.

"Quest! Quest, get up!" she exclaims. Her pink nightgown lifts and falls as she does, and the color made him dizzy so early. Shaking his head, he threw the blanket off of him and grabbed his glasses off his bed table, and the room came sharply into focus.

"It's seven in the morning, Bradi," Quest complained. "Relax. What's the deal?"

He knew that she really had no reason. Bradi was a complete girly-girl, and for being eight years old, she acted like she was six. His parents never cared. She was their baby, their little girl. In secret, Quest and Twain worried that she would end up on one of the assembly lines when the time came for her to take up a job.

She just giggled and jumped off the bed, running out of the bedroom and into the hallway, leaving Quest to shake his head as he swung out of bed to get ready for the day.

"Bradi wake you up, too?" Quest turned to see Twain in his doorway, her own nightgown a plain gray. She had an amused expression on her face as she stared at him. "What are we going to do with her?"

Quest knew what she meant. If his parents didn't start getting Bradi on track so she could pass her tests when she was sixteen, she would have no future. "I don't know," he shrugged. "She's not stupid, Twain. She's just immature, but she'll have to grow up and start thinking about her future soon."

"We both know that, and so do Mom and Dad," Twain replied. "But if it doesn't happen soon, she'll end up assembling televisions."

"I'll talk to them," Quest said. He knew it was time to act. Television assemblies didn't make much money, and he couldn't bear to see his sister beaten into that monotony. She belonged on stage, dancing as Clara in The Nutcracker. She belonged with a paintbrush in her hands, mixing colors into amazing designs.

He wasn't going to let that happen to her.

"No one thinks that she will be reaped," Twain mused. She fully entered the room and sat on his bed. "I hope she won't be. It's not too likely, is it?"

"Doubt it," Quest said. He finished buttoning his shirt and sitting next to her. "Somebody would volunteer for her, though. Nobody's going to just let her go and die." His unspoken sentence hung in the air between the siblings. We wouldn't let her go.

"Let's just stick with, It's not too likely." Twain had a tone that was almost scared. She didn't show fear often, but today was different. Quest imagined the scene. Their escort pulling the name Bradi Warez. Then a girl a bit older volunteered. She announced her name as Twain Warez… He pushed that thought out of his mind and shook his head to clear it. "You have an hour til the Reaping. Go eat breakfast before we head out."

With a grin, Quest nodded and got up. He knew today would be fine. It had to be.

* * *

 _Xena Sedala, aged 11_

Xena sat at the kitchen table, eating a tasteless bowl of some mush Mima had made the night before. Xena knew better than to complain about food. Knowing Mima, she'd get a lecture about being grateful for any food at all, and maybe a swat on the shoulder with the wooden spoon.

"Get finished quickly," Mima said, across the table from her. "The Steins are waiting for you by eleven, and you have to be at the Square at twelve thirty."

Xena didn't speak, and it was met with her sister's annoyed expression. She could understand her sister's actions to an extent. Everything had been just fine until her mother's death. She knew that Mima blamed her for the death of her mother in childbirth, and their father's abandonment afterward, leaving nine-year-old Mima taking care of a newborn. For a few years, they had relied on charity from neighbors. However, when Mima became eligible for a job, she had not passed her test well. She had been given a job managing a couple shifts at the cell phone factory. It made money, but not enough to take care of two girls all alone in the world.

Xena knew her sister before her tests. Life hadn't been perfect, but Mima had smiled on occasion back then. Now, Mima usually had a scowl on her features. It was only occasionally replaced by other emotions.

"I know. I'm going to head there right after I'm finished cleaning up."

Mima looked at her but said nothing. Xena finished eating in a few minutes and ran upstairs to get her apron and tie up her hair. She knew she needed to leave soon, but she took a moment to fix her hair neatly. No one wanted a messy-looking serving girl. That's what she was. She went early to the Mayor's house every morning very early and did whatever work was required of her until she had to get to school. Immediately after, she went back to do a few more hours work before going home for dinner in the evening.

As she walked through District 3, Xena felt that the streets were her friend. She spent more time there than she did anywhere else for the most part. It was a companionable silence, just her and the nearly empty morning streets.

Finally arriving at the Mayor's home, she knocked loudly on the door. It was answered by the one person she did not wish to see today. The mayor's daughter, Marie Stein, was at the door, a wide grin on her face. "Hi, Xena!"

The two girls were only a few years apart in age, but their lives couldn't have been more different. Marie had probably never lifted a finger to do any kind of work in her life, while Xena had to work simply to keep a roof over her head and food in her stomach.

Marie never seemed to care that they were so different, however. Whenever Xena was around doing work, Marie pestered her about school, friends, guys she liked, and accomplishments she had made. She wanted to roll her eyes at Marie most of the time and was usually glad to be free of her presence. Today, however, Marie was inescapable.

It was obvious that the older girl was very nervous because she babbled the whole time. Xena mostly tuned her out, but it was getting harder and harder as she moved throughout the kitchen, wiping counters and putting plates away. Finally, Xena had had enough. She was usually sweet and patient, but her nerves were short today, with the Reaping so close.

"Will you be quiet!?" Xena exclaimed, throwing her towel down on the counter and rounding on Marie. "You think you're nervous? You will never get picked. You only have, what, three entries? I'm only eleven! I'm not even supposed to be eligible for another year! Next year, I'm going to have four entries. I can't afford to not take any tesserae, unlike you."

Xena didn't say that while the younger tributes weren't eligible for tesserae, next year Mima would probably force her to take some tesserae. "You are a spoiled brat, Marie Stein. I hope you do get picked." Xena's eyes darted to the clock on the wall. It was almost noon, time for the Reaping.

Without a word, Xena turned away from Marie and stalked out of the kitchen and out the front door. She was dreading telling Mima that they'd probably lost their most valuable customer, and then she realized she did not care. If she wasn't picked today, which was very likely, she could run away. It was better than staying with someone who hated her.

And if she was chosen… Xena didn't want to think it, but the sentence finished itself in her head. If she was chosen, she would hope that no one would volunteer for her. She would be away from her sister who hated her, and the people who she worked for, who, however nice the acted to her, still seemed to be condescending. In the Capitol, she would be applauded and loved… at least until they wanted her dead in the Arena.

Walking down the sidewalk towards the square, Xena shook her head. She needed to get that thought out of her head. She would not be chosen. She did not want to be chosen. However much she tried to convince herself, she had never been a good liar.

Xena wanted to be chosen for the Hunger Games.

* * *

 _Tek Palmer, aged 8_

Tek stood in the lines to enter the square, his mother by his side, holding his hand. He looked up at her, seeing that she had tears in her eyes. He knew why she and his father were always crying lately. He should not have been eligible for the Reaping for several more years, and this Quell had ruined that. He had as much chance of being chosen as any one of the newly eligible children.

They reached the end of the line, where one of the ladies there roughly grabbed his hand. A sharp pain stabbed his middle finger, and his finger was pressed onto the open page of what appeared to be a leger.

"Go on through," the woman said. Tek waited for his mother to finish, and they made their way through the crowd to figure out where Tek would need to wait for the tributes to be chosen. Finally, he spotted a few kids he recognized from his class at school.

Tek had done his best to be strong for his parents. He hadn't cried when he found out when he found out he would be eligible for the Games this year. No tears had been shed when they had gone to the Justice Building to register him. Now, it was all too much. No eight year old should have had to deal with this stuff. Now he cried.

He didn't want to be here. He wanted to go home and play MegaMan on his video game system. He wanted to be laughing and sharing a cupcake with his friends he sat with at lunchtime. More than anything, he wanted his father here too. He had come early to save spaces in the crowd for himself and his wife, and Tek wished he could see him right now, for what possibly would be the last time.

Tek's mother noticed that her son had begun crying, and knelt down to his level. She quickly wiped off her own tears before drying his as well. "You've been very brave, Tek," she told him. As always, her voice was very soothing to him. It was no different than if she was placing a wet cloth on his forehead when he was sick, or helping him tie his shoes, patiently explaining how the bunny went into his tunnel. "I'm so sorry you have to go through this, but I promise you'll be just fine today. We'll be home later, eating dinner and laughing at our worry. Right now, though, you have to be strong a bit longer and wait with your friends. Can you do that?"

With a shudder, Tek nodded. She was right, of course. His mother had never lied to him, and he didn't think she would start now. He decided that he would believe her, and gave a small smile. "I love you, Mom."

Mother and son embraced, and then Tek surged into the crowd of eight-year-olds. He was right next to a girl wearing a pale pink dress, her light brown hair in similarly colored pigtails. Bradi Warez was a nice enough girl, but she kind of annoyed Tek. She never took her studies seriously, preferring to paint all the time. He knew she had two older siblings, but he didn't remember their names, but that didn't matter.

"Hiya, Tek," another voice said. Tek turned around to see his friend Noala grinning at him.

"Hi," he said, his voice subdued. Noala looked at him, narrowing her eyes.

"You okay?" she asked, her voice laced with worry. They had been friends since the beginning of this school year. She had been moved from a different classroom to his. She had been sat next to her, and when he'd asked why she'd been transferred, her reply had been, "I hit a kid with a box of colored pencils because he pulled my hair and tried to take them away."

"I'm fine," he answered, attempting some of his usual jovial demeanor. It came up short, however, and Noala didn't relent.

"No, you're not," she decided. "Of course not. This is ridiculous!"

They didn't get a chance to talk long, for the escort, a woman named Berenice began the Reaping.

The typical spiel was rolled out, but this was the first year Tek paid attention to it. He thought it sounded a lot like propaganda. He had learned that word in class last week, and he liked the sound of it.

Finally, Berenice ended with the expected, "Happy Hunger Games, and may the odds be ever in your favor!"

She walked over to the first bowl, labeled as the older girls bowl. A slip of paper was drawn, and Berenice returned to the podium. She undid the wrapped up paper, and read the name silently for a moment. She seemed to take a while to process the name. Slowly, she said, "The elder female tribute of District Three will be Marie Stein."

Tek understood her surprise. What were the odds of this girl being chosen? The Mayor's daughter had to be one of the safest in the district. If she wasn't safe, nobody was. Not really. The girl came out of the fourteens section, her big blue eyes widened in shock as she took in the information. She suddenly stopped moving. A pair of Peacekeepers came over to her and began to push her onto the stage. Marie thrashed in their grips, yelling things like, "Do you know who I am?!" and, "Someone please volunteer!"

No one did, and Marie stood onstage, alone with the breeze blowing through her blonde hair. It was a pathetic sight, and Tek knew that she would be gone after a few days in the arena. Even if she wasn't killed by a tribute, she would not be used to going hungry, which was common in the Games.

The commotion died down enough for Berenice to get the crowd's attention back onto the matter at hand. The younger female tribute was drawn, and her name read out for the crowds to hear.

"The younger female tribute of District Three is Xena Sedala!"

From the eleven-year-olds section, a dark-haired little girl stood and made her way through the pack, her face a shell-shocked mask of didn't seem to be taking in the crowds around her, staring instead at Marie. Marie was determinedly not looking at her, and Tek wondered what was going on there.

No commotion ensued this time, for Xena was complacent, walking up onto the stage and standing beside Marie silently, a couple feet between them. Without issue, Berenice moved on with the proceedings.

A name was drawn from the older males section, and the last name jogged Tek's memory.

"The elder male tribute from District Three is… Quest Warez!"

Tek caught a glimpse of pink and noticed the form of Bradi Warez take a couple of minuscule steps back, nearly bumping into him. "Sorry," she whispered.

A boy came out of the fifteen-year-olds section, taking his time as he scanned the crowds. He seemed to be searching for people, but he stopped as he reached the stage. Standing on the other side of Marie, he awkwardly adjusted his wire-rimmed glasses on his nose.

All too soon, Berenice moved on with the ceremony, and Tek remembered to be afraid. What if he was chosen? What if he was chosen? What if…?

Berenice read the name she had drawn, and Tek felt his blood run cold.

"Finally, our younger male tribute for District Three is Tek Palmer."

Tek heard Noala gasp behind her and grasp his hand as if she could keep him there that way. Bradi whipped around to face him, her face worried and streaked with tears.

No one tried to protect him. Why would they? He was an only child and friendship only went so far where the Games were concerned. The crowd parted, making a path for Tek to get to the stage. The walk was like what he imagined heading to an execution would feel like.

Tek made it to the stage, taking his place beside Quest on the end of the lineup. Tek did his best and was pleased to know that he would not cry now.

A piercing scream rang through the crowd. Tek pinpointed the noise and saw his mother, an agonized expression on her face as she leaned into his father. He himself looked like he wanted to collapse, but he was focused on keeping his wife upright.

Tek didn't take his eyes off of them until Peacekeepers escorted them into the Justice Building.

* * *

 _Marie Stine, aged 14_

Oooh, that wretched girl! Marie wanted to rush next door and wring that miserable girl Xena's neck before someone else got the chance in the Arena. It was Xena's fault that Marie was in the Games now, she was sure of it. How else could she have been chosen?

Her words from earlier played over in Marie's mind, bringing her ever closer to flying from the room to the one beside her own. I hope you get Reaped! You're a spoiled brat! Marie didn't believe those last words, of course. It wasn't her fault that her parents gave her everything she asked for. Her life was perfect. Who wouldn't have taken advantage of it? Sure, she talked a lot sometimes, but that was when she was nervous.

It had been completely out of line for Xena to have said those things. Marie was her better. If she had wanted, she could have had someone arrest her and punished.

Marie was brought out of her thoughts by the door opening, and two people entered the room to visit her. She had expected to see Graine or Urala, or probably Chip. It was her parents, come to say goodbye.

"Mama, papa," Marie was a little girl again, curling up in her mother's arms after getting a scraped knee. Her mother, the mayor, embraced her for a few moments, before holding her out at arm's length to look at her.

"Marie, sweetheart," she whispered, tears shimmering in her eyes. Marie felt like crying, looking at her mother. "I'm so sorry this happened. I did everything I could to get you out of it, but I failed. It's not possible to do a redraw, and no one volunteered."

"I knew that I'd have to do it," Marie replied, smiling wanly. She didn't like it, but she had accepted being in the Games. After all, here she was just the mayor's daughter. In the Capitol, she could be a Victor.

"You know you're not strong, Marie," her father told her, wincing as he said the words. He didn't want to tell his daughter this, but it was necessary. She couldn't be too confident in herself, or she'd lose focus. "Focus on camouflaging and hiding. Things that can help you avoid tributes. That'll be your best chance."

Marie was wrapped in her father's arms then, and everything felt safe to her mother's arms were comforting when she was hurt or upset. In her father's arms, she felt like nothing would be able to harm her. She wanted to keep that feeling forever, but she knew that was pretty impossible. She believed in many things that some would say were not possible, but she knew that this was one thing even she would not believe.

"Thanks, papa," she said. "I'll do my best to come back. I think I can do it."

Finally, their time was done. Even the mayor had to obey rules, and there were only fifteen minutes allowed per each set of sat for a while, hoping that someone, anyone else would come to visit her before the hour was up.

Her wish was granted. Shortly before the hour was to be done, the door opened and a boy her age entered. His dark curly hair was in his eyes, and he pushed it away, revealing his intense grey eyes.

"Chip!" Marie exclaimed, more excited than she should have probably let on. She had had a crush on him for the last year or so, but they had been friends long before that. It had been awkward the last year, but she'd managed to hide her crush on him. It was embarrassing!

"Hey, Marie," he said, giving her his lopsided grin that made her like him even more. "I'm sorry you got picked. It's totally unfair. You shouldn't have been able to get picked. You had nowhere near enough entries."

Marie knew that of course, but it had happened. There was no point denying that much. "And yet, here I am," she said brightly. "I think it will be fun, even if I do die. Sort of like camping, I think."

Chip seemed to want to say something, but then he stopped himself. "Right. Anyway, I just wanted to give you something." He took an object out of his pants pocket and handed it to Marie. She examined the silver colored ribbon in her hand.

"It's really pretty, Chip! Thanks!" She was entirely happy to receive this gift from the guy she liked. It seemed almost like a token of affection, like in the romance stories she heard about.

Chip had gone slightly red-faced and began rubbing his arm. "Er… mom wanted me to give it to you. Something left over from a dress she made yesterday."

The silence was awkward, and Chip seemed to be relieved when the time was up and he was required to leave. Marie was all alone, sitting in the receiving room as the time to leave came closer and closer.

She would not let the time dwindle away. She would use it to win over the Capitol citizens and become this year's Victor. She just needed to get Xena out of the way before that happened. No way would they win together. Marie would see to that.

 **So that's the chapter. Just wanted to make a quick announcement before I give you your questions for this entry. I have a beta! Thank you so much to the lovely SadieAnnabethMellark! She helped so much through this chapter. I might have her go through the previous chapters as well, so look for those to be re-uploaded. I'm also hoping to get into a fairly regular updating schedule, but I make no promises. So now here's your questions for this chapter. There's a lot this round!**

 **1\. I forgot to ask this last chapter: Who were your favorites last chapter? Persephone, Marcus, Calaena, or Leo?**  
 **2\. What did you think of the video cast? Is my casting decent enough?**  
 **3\. Will Quest's knowledge be a help or hindrance? Is he too smart in only certain areas?**  
 **4\. Will Xena's mouth end up getting her in trouble?**  
 **5\. Is Tek going to be an early elimination, or do you think there's something behind his innocent surface?**  
 **6\. Marie is quite spoiled, but will her optimism help her in any way? Is she going to be just another lackluster tribute?**


	6. UPDATE: PLEASE READ ASAP!

**Hey everyone! Soooooooooo... how are you all? Bet you all thought I had disappeared. Nope, here I am! I'm sorry this is taking so long, but the reapings take a while. Districts Four and Five will be out within a few days, because I'm not going to go to sleep until they are written and beta'd by Sadie.**

 **Please let me know if you're still out there, and I guess I can give you a couple of questions to keep you guys interested.**

 **1\. Would you guys like to see some kind of Sponsor system? If so, let me know how you think I should go about it.**

 **2\. Which character so far has been your favorite, from Districts 1-3?**

 **3\. Which character from 1-3 do you think will win?**

 **4: Are there any story ideas you would like me to incorporate relating to any character from 1-3, or your own submissions?**

 **5: Specifically for submitters: How would you want to see your character die?**

 **6: Also for submitters: What is your characters greatest fear? Don't make it something extremely common like spiders or heights, that comes up too much and isn't interesting any more.**


	7. District Four Reapings: Secrets

**Let's welcome to the stage our next tributes! It's time to see District Four's worthy candidates. For the ladies, we have the lovely Mariana Hurley-Bellus and Cove Scupper, who were created by POMForever. For our boys, we have Adrian Tang and Ayu Kuang, who were submitted by Starasphodel672. These are some really great characters, but so far I think Cove is my favorite this chapter. Thanks you guys for your tributes, keep up the support!**

 _District Four Reapings: Secrets_

 _Sick of all the insincere_

 _I'm gonna give all my secrets away_

 _\- Secrets, OneRepublic_

* * *

 _Ayu Kuang, aged 10_

Ayu pumped his arms, gliding through the water with exceeding proficiency. He had gotten up very early to get some laps in at the lake before he had to go home and get ready for the reaping.

Lots of people told him that he needed to relax, be a ten-year-old for a while longer. Ayu never listened to them, because they just didn't get it. Sports and being athletic was pretty much everything in his school. If he didn't want to be humiliated by the other guys in his fifth-grade class, he needed to stay in shape.

Finally drifting to a stop at the pier, he looked up at his companion. Serene was super cool, with a blue streak in her brown hair and a no-nonsense attitude. She held a stopwatch they'd borrowed from her older brother, and was smiling proudly.

"You beat that last score!" she said, facing the timer so he could see it. The numbers were at 4:38, which was a whole fifteen seconds faster than his previous one. "From the pier to the buoy and back. Nice job."

"Thanks," he acknowledged, holding onto the deck next to her. "What time is it? Do we need to get going?"

"Pretty soon," she said, pulling out a pocket watch. "It's 12:15 right now. You can do one more lap if you want. Better chance against the competition, eh?"

Ayu considered it for a moment but decided against it. "Nah, help me up. Let's head back. Besides, the only people who will be competing will be the ones in the alliance, and they won't do anything to me if I prove myself

Serene had a dubious expression but reached her hand out to haul him onto the deck, but he instead pulled on her hands, pulling her into the water. With a shriek, she fell in and came up gasping.

"Ayu Kuang, you are the most wretched boy I know!" she exclaimed, but her face betrayed the fact that she found this very amusing.

"Yeah, yeah," he laughed, grinning. "Let's go, we'll be late."

Pulling themselves up on the deck, they sat and dripped water for a minute.

"Hey, Ayu?" Serene's tone was a question, and Ayu was surprised by it. "Why are you going to volunteer?"

They had talked about this several times before, of course. Ever since the Quell had been mentioned, he had decided that he would enter and become the youngest victor ever. Lots of his friends supported this decision, but Serene had doubts. She thought he'd get himself killed, or do things that would make him different. She had never been this direct about asking him why.

"I dunno," he shrugged. "I want to prove that a kid can win if they're smart about it, and then I'll stay alive and get back and you'll feel silly about thinking I'll get killed."

"No, I'm serious about that, Ayu!" She was getting upset now, and Ayu didn't know what to do about it. "You're only ten. Even if you're the best ten year old in the games, there are going to be plenty of people out in the arena who will be smarter or bigger than you, not just careers. I think you should rethink this, and it's not too late!"

Ayu was annoyed at her now. "Serene, what do you want me to say? I'm the most popular kid in the class. If the guys think I backed out of this, they'll mock me. I can't back out. You don't understand how us guys think. My reputation is everything."

Serene muttered something he didn't quite catch under her breath. It sounded like, "And now it's gonna get you killed." She looked like she wanted to say something else, but went against it. "You'd better hope you win, Ayu. If you don't, I'll just bring you back so I can kill you myself, just for being so stupid."

"Yeah, sure," he laughed, the tension of the moment quickly diffusing at Serene's joke. He was glad for it; he hated when they were in an argument. She would never change his mind, though.

He, Ayu Kuang, was going to volunteer in this year's Hunger Games.

* * *

 _Mariana Hurley-Bellus, aged 18_

It is a great honor to be chosen by the Academy heads to be the Hunger Games volunteer, but all Mariana wanted to do was head over to the Seaton's place and watch some stupid movie on the television. Unfortunately, that would not be possible this year. Mariana Hurley-Bellus had been chosen for the position of Volunteer of the 125th Hunger Games, and so she would have to be shoved into the nation's spotlight for the next few weeks, until she either killed the final tribute and came back to the salty air and rushing waves of District Four, or someone killed her, and she came back in a wooden box. It had been a surprise when she had been selected since she had only gone to the training sessions on Sunday afternoons and Thursday mornings, but it wasn't a huge stretch. She was pretty good with her specific skills and very rarely was one of the other girls able to beat her in practice.

Mariana looked up at the sun, high up in the sky, and knew it was now time to head for shore. It was reaping day, and it would not do to be late, especially because she was the star of the show. Manning the wheel all the way to shore, Mariana expertly maneuvered the mid-sized craft to shore. Usually, River Hurley-Bellus, Mariana's mother, as well as a couple other members of the small crew, would be on the deck of the Prydein helping Mariana to land and tie off their boat after the long day of fishing.

The Prydein was a small fishing boat, nothing near the size of many of the barges that sailed District Four's waters, but Mariana wouldn't have wanted to live anywhere else. Prydein was her home, and it's small crew were her "aunts", "uncles," and "cousins". It had four decks, three of which were below and contained the ships galley, cargo hold, and small cabins for the Hurley-Belluss and as well as the nineteen other members of the crew and their families. River ran her ship firmly but fairly, and Mariana, as first mate, did her best to set the example.

Today, her mother had decided to head below an hour earlier, to help Storm get ready. The rest of the crew had either decided to get a couple extra hours of sleep or were helping their own children get ready for the reaping

Storm was every bit as familiar with Prydein's workings as any senior crew member was, but the ten year old preferred to stay below, reading books on biology and marine wildlife, and helping their stepfather with the ship's accounts or helping with minor repairs. He was often heard saying that he wanted to be a marine biologist, but no one actually thought he would. Just because District Four was primarily a district that did anything to do with the surrounding waters, most of the residents livelihood came from fishing, not from studying the fish. Mariana loved reading about different fish, but never dreamed of making a career out of it.

"Mariana, ready to get back to the landlubber realm?" a joking voice called from the entrance to the lower decks. Mariana quickly released the ropes for the anchors, turning to face the intruder. It was Mo Coen, second mate aboard the Prydein. Mo, as almost everyone called her(she was Jewish, and her name, she had told Mariana, meant "from the water" in Hebrew, which she thought was quite on the nose for her profession), was a kind woman. Where River and Mariana were known to be abrasive with their words at times, Mariana didn't think that Mo had ever said a harsh word to anyone. Unlike many of the other crew members, who mostly only stayed on for a few months (none stayed much longer than a year) before they would move on, Mo had been second mate on Prydein for as long as Mariana could remember. When her mother had been busy above decks when she was a little girl, it was Mo who had helped patch skinned knees and such other child doings.

Mo had a mischievous side that very few saw often. Mariana still remembered the time on her twelfth birthday when she had laid in wait outside the below-decks entrance with a bucket of freezing cold water, which she then proceeded to dump over her head, cackling as Mariana began to chase her around the top deck. On the other hand, she was also a great person to confide in when she needed advice or was upset. After her first boyfriend broke up with her two years ago, it had been Mo who found her huddled in her cabin, sobbing uncontrollably, and simply held her while the tears flowed.

"Sure, it's time we gave them a taste of what Prydein is made of, aye?" Mariana grinned widely. It was always good to joke with Mo. "Gotta show everyone in the Capitol District Four is still a powerful district."

Smiling wryly, Mo approached and leaned against the deck railing next to Mariana. "I still don't know if it's a good idea for you to volunteer for this Games. I don't think you have it in you to kill a little seven-year-old."

Mariana had already decided that she wouldn't go after any of the kids who weren't normally eligible for the games. She considered that the cowards way to winning, and whatever she was, Mariana Hurley-Bellus was not a coward. If one of them attacked her, though, that was their own fault for being idiotic and trying to beat a girl many years their senior

"I told you, I'm not going to go after any of them intentionally," Mariana reminded her. "You don't have to worry about me, I'll be fine. I can handle myself in the Capitol, I haven't had any snaps in six months."

Mariana lowered the ladder to the pier for anyone who was about to head onshore for the reaping and headed for the door below-decks to get ready for the reaping. As she passed Mo, Mariana couldn't help noticing the look of concern the older woman wore. She didn't know how, but she knew that the concern was not directed at her, but at anyone who ended up pushing Mariana too far and making her snap anytime in the arena.

Mariana could control herself. She had to.

* * *

 _Adrian Tang, Aged 18_

 _The waves crashed violently around the beach, the exact kind of day the Tang family loved. Adrian was on the beach, watching his father diving and retrieving clams from the water bed._

 _"_ _That was a really big one, Dad!" Adrian called, noticing a larger than average clam his father had just picked up and brought to the beach._

 _The waves seemed to get even more violent, and they were beginning to make Adrian uneasy. These were surging waves, unlike Adrian had never seen before._

 _"_ _The waves are really mounting up, aren't they, son?" Adrian's father said, examining the waves as they continued crashing in front of them._

 _"_ _Yeah, maybe we should go home?" Adrian questioned. These waves were not safe to be in anymore. "This doesn't feel safe anymore."_

 _"_ _Sure, I'll just go check the buoys really quick, then we'll leave." With that, Adrian's father dove back into the crashing surf, making his way to the buoys about twenty yards further into the ocean._

 _Adrian stood at the end of the beach, watching closely as his father swam closer to the bright orange buoys. He saw as the high waves crashed around his father, watched as his father disappeared behind the rise of one and was gone when it crashed back down._

 _"_ _DAD!" Adrian yelled, but he knew his father couldn't hear him that far away. The waves were too loud. As fast as he could, he ran towards the rescue boats at the shores. "Man underwater!" he exclaimed to them. "Near the buoys!"_

 _The rescue boats had found nothing and by the time they returned, Adrian knew the search had been fruitless._

 _His father was dead, drowned in the swelling waves._

Those were the memories running through Adrian Tang's mind as he waited at the square to sign in. It was time for the reaping, and Adrian was to be the male volunteer for District Four. That had been yesterday, though. His mind was far away from the tedious lines of children and teenagers waiting to get their fingers pricked, to be admitted to the square, and to find out their fate. He knew that he could no longer volunteer. His family could not handle two losses in less than a day, so whatever honor and prestige it would have offered the family should he win, he could not do it. The risk was too great.

Adrian couldn't get the images out of his mind of what had happened the previous day. The images of crashing waves and shouts were loud in his mind, even as the line they were in shuffled forward.

"Adrian," the fifteen-year-old said in a sing-song tone. This brought him out of the memories, and he looked around. Embarrassed, he realized he was now next to have his finger jabbed with the barb-like needle.

"Sorry," he muttered as he gave the check-in lady his hand.

Getting it over with, he and Namia proceeded through the crowd. Before they left, she grabbed his wrist and whispered to him fiercely.

"Adrian Tang, get a grip. Yeah, Dad's death was sad, but he wouldn't want you to wallow in memories of it. I'm serious, and you know this. He never wanted to keep us from living our lives and being happy, and that extends past his death."

When she was quiet, Adrian took a breath he didn't realize he had been holding. Namia could be a force, and she used it well. Unable to say anything, he just nodded. She gave him a searching look, before gauging he would be okay and situating herself with some friends in the fifteen-year-olds crowd.

Adrian didn't speak to anyone as he made his way to the front of the crowd, where the oldest potential tributes were situated. He didn't want to give away how nerve-wracking the reapings always were to him.

He and Delia had gotten there earlier than they needed to be, and soon, Adrian felt two presences stand on either side of him. One of them grabbed his hand, the other simply stood there. Turning to either side, he saw his best friend Sean Koire, and his twin sister Leandra. She and Adrian had began dating the previous fall. Sean had taken it quite well, giving him the "Brother speech" that if he hurt Leandra, it would be his last act.

There was no need for any of them to say anything. They were so close, they could say everything simply with their body language and expressions. Today, even that wasn't needed, because nervous energy flowed between them all.

Finally, everyone in the crowd grew silent as the mayor, Genio Freedman the escort, and the nine living victors of District Four came onto the stage. Four glass bowls were already waiting there, and Adrian couldn't help his racing heart.

"Welcome to the 125th Hunger Games reaping!" Genio called through the square. "May the odds be ever in your favor!"

The proceedings continued, with the presentation of the previous victors, the video, and the reading of the Treaty. Genio then returned to the podium, ready to choose the four tributes.

The first bowl was the younger male tribute. Genio dug around in the bowl and chose the fated child.

"Storm Bellus!" she called through the crowd. A kid from the ten-year-olds began to come onstage. His eyes were wide with terror and surprise

He didn't make it halfway before someone was calling out, "I volunteer!" A boy from the same section came through the crowd, a confident smile on his face. Arriving on the stage, he introduced himself. "I'm Ayu Kuang, I'm ten years old, and I'm going to be a victor!"

No one was very impressed by his bravado, and he stood aside for the older male tribute to be drawn. Adrian waited along with everyone else to hear the tribute that would shortly yield a volunteer. Genio grabbed a slip and ripped the seal, saying the words that ruined Adrian.

"The older male tribute is Adrian Tang!"

Adrian heard it but was surprised. How had it been his name? Then he controlled himself. He was a tribute now. No one would volunteer for an eighteen-year-old, so he had to act calm and self-assured. As he made his way up to the stage and stood beside Ayu Kuang, he thought he did pretty well.

It was the girls next, and they went smoothly. A thirteen-year-old girl was reaped and was quickly replaced by an older girl. You couldn't tell because she looked almost as young as the girl she replaced. She couldn't have been more than three or four inches taller than five feet, with curly sandy blonde hair that reached her shoulders.

"My name is Mariana Hurley-Bellus," she said when asked her name, and then retreated to stand beside Adrian.

There was no volunteer for the younger girls. A young redheaded girl, announced as Cove Scupper, slowly walked up the stairs, her cheeks flushed bright red, which threw her freckles into sharper relief.

The ceremony was over once they all shook hands, and they were escorted into the Justice Building. Adrian was glad the district's attention was off him for the time being.

* * *

 _Cove Scupper, aged 10_

After being escorted into the room where she would say goodbye to anyone who decided to come, Cove sat down in one of the armchairs and began to examine everything in the room. She wanted to remember every detail of the room where she would probably see her family for the last time. Her mom and dad owned a shop in town where they repaired fishing boat equipment. If you had a torn net, broken lifeboat oars, or anything else ship related, you went to the Scuppers shop. They made a decent living, so they very rarely went hungry unlike many people in the District.

Cove was very good at the family business, and so she knew that she could probably make it past the bloodbath killings at the very least. She had only begun training at the academy last month, so she didn't know very much about how to use weapons or anything. She could use the nets fairly well, and she hoped that if she set traps around wherever she decided to hide out.

Cove only expected to see a few people during this time. Her parents would definitely come, and so would a couple of her friends. No one else knew her well enough to actually care now that she wouldn't come back.

Nothing ever gave Cove much to worry about. She was a smart girl who knew that there was nothing to be scared of in the dark, heights never bothered her(she had walked across the thin ledge beside the diving boards at the school pool), and she was more likely to put a spider in her terrarium than to scream and squash it. She sometimes was afraid when a big dog came near her and she wasn't aware. Now was different, though. Until this point, she had never been faced with life and death situations. Cove was quickly realizing that she was afraid to die, at least before she'd lived a decent life.

What a time to learn…

After a few minutes of waiting, Cove almost began to think no one was actually going to come and looked down at the floor rather than the door. She studied the small scar from the dog that bit her when she was five, waiting for the chance to leave.

She heard footsteps from outside and looked up to see the door open as it admitted her parents. They stood close to the door, tentatively looking at her, as if afraid of what they might see, or possibly worrying that this would be the last time that they saw her.

"Cove," her mother said the words so quietly, they were barely audible from where she stood.

Cove never considered herself a crybaby, but she couldn't help herself as she jumped up from the seat and ran across the room, sobbing as she embraced her mother tightly.

"Mom, they're going to kill me, aren't they?" she asked through choked up syllables. "I don't want to die."

The look in her mother's eyes was devastating. There was nothing she could do for her daughter when it truly mattered. Her father embraced them both, and Cove felt herself calm down a little bit.

"We aren't going to lie and tell you winning will be a cinch," her father said, looking into his daughter's eyes. "But, if you stay with Mariana and the other careers, at least for awhile, and leave with her when things get hairy, you can make it to finals with Mariana."

Cove knew this would be her best bet, and smiled gratefully at her father's appreciated his comfort, even if they all knew she would never win, not in a thousand years, or if hell froze over.

Her mother took something dangling out of her pocket, holding it out to her daughter. Cove examined the necklace in her hands. It was a beautiful shell made of pale blue sea glass, with a worn leather cord to tie it around her neck.

"It's beautiful, Mom," Cove smiled at her as she tied it firmly around her neck. "Thanks. I promise I'll do my best to come back with Mariana."

Their time slowly ran out, and they left with wishes of luck and orders to enjoy the capitol for the time they were there. Alone once again, Cove studied the necklace while she waited. It really was a work of great craftsmanship. The swirls and divots on the shell were incredibly detailed.

The door creaked open once again, and three people entered the room. She knew them very well. Storm Bellus, Nerida Brooks, and Davy Bowline were her best friends in school They often went swimming together, and a couple times snuck into the often mostly vacant movie theater together to watch old movies.

"Hey, Cove," Nerida began, a cautious smile on her face. "How're you holding up?"

"I'm doing as well as the situation calls for, Neri," Cove answered. "I mean, I'm about to go to the Capitol to be paraded around for the week, and then I'm sent to the arena, where forty-six other people are going to be trying to kill me."

"Perky, as ever," Davy smirked, laughing at her morbid words.

"Storm, did you go see your sister?" Cove asked him. He knew this had to be hard, with his best friend and sister both being sent to the arena to be hunted and killed.

"Yeah, she's doing okay. You know how she is, always all stoic. I asked her to help you out, so you both can come back. Gave her one of those bracelets you and Neri showed us how to make last month. Remember them?"

Cove nodded slowly. Truly, she was quite surprised that the boy remembered that.

"We're betting on you both coming back in one piece," Neri warned, shaking a finger at her friend. "I'm serious. All our savings are going to sending you sponsor stuff."

"Well, I'd hate to think you wasted your money for nothing," Cove grinned. "I'm going to do my best to get back. I would never leave you guys in peace to just sit around and be boring."

"They almost didn't let us in since they thought we weren't related, but we told them we were your cousins and they let us in," Davy said. "I was surprised they bought it."

The time was almost done for them as well, and they were escorted out. Cove returned to the comfortable armchair to await the escort to the train. She was now ready to get on with this ordeal.

 **And thus ends my two-month hiatus. I'm so sorry it's been so long, but as I said in the UPDATE chapter, I've been swamped in college and just getting out of the post-holiday funk. I'm back now, though, so now the story will continue. Look for District Five in about a week.**

 **Once again, big shoutout to anyone who made characters for this, as well as my lovely Beta, SadieAnnabethMellark!**

 **Here are your chapterly questions.**

 **Who is your favorite in this chapter: Ayu, Mariana, Adrian, or Cove?**

 **Who was your favorite from District Three? I remembered to ask District Two last time when I'd forgotten but forgot Three.**

 **Ayu seems to value his reputation greatly. Will his ego suffer when he has to vie for popularity against tributes who are more popular or charismatic?**

 **Mariana seems to know that she is a bit of a hot fuse, but will her knowledge be able to help her control it in a world full of triggers?**

 **Adrian's memories seem to hold him more than the real world. Will he be able to stay out of his memories long enough to win the Games?**

 **Cove seems like a girl to just brush off problems that come her way, but will it be enough when she's faced with the arena?**


	8. District Five Reapings: Wake Me Up

District Five: Wake Me Up When September Ends

 _Summer has come and passed_

 _The innocent can never last_

 _Wake Me Up When September Ends, Green Day_

* * *

 **ANNNDDD I'm back people! Sorry for the horribly sporadic and distant chapters, but I'm not giving up on this story, and I hope you all won't give up on me! We're traveling out of the career districts and into the secretive District 5. Our tributes here are Blanche Alucard and Surdon Crees for the young ladies, who were created by HoppsHungerFan, and Flare Whispworth and Jet Wyre for our boys, created by Girl With a Flower Crown. These guys are all pretty interesting, so let's see what they end up doing for the story here!**

* * *

 _Blanche Alucard, aged 16_

Blanche was probably one of the few people not glad of a break from work on Reaping Day. Working kept her mind busy, and that was a good thing when so many thoughts whizzed around her mind. Her friends called her a workaholic, Blanche called it dedication and providing for her family. Although her mother primarily made up their income working at the electricity plant and made halfway decent money comparatively, Blanche's own wages from the accounting statistics company she worked at were greatly appreciated.

"Blanche, Blanche, get up!" a teenage boy's excitable voice stage whispered into her ear. Blanche startled awake from the surprise, opening her eyes to see her thirteen year old brother Kipper standing with an excited expression on his face.

"Kip, what do you want?" she groaned, turning on her side to stare at him properly.

"Let's go for a run before we have to get ready for the reaping," he said. She had half expected this. Ever since he was ten years old, and she thirteen, Kipper had woken her up to go for a run with him. She did find that this helped get rid of some of her jitters, but she never let him see that.

"All right," Blanche grumbled, sitting up and reaching for a hair tie on her bedside table. "Wait for me outside, would you?"

Kipper nodded enthusiastically and left the bedroom, leaving Blanche in relative quiet. The only noises were the morning sounds of a few bird calls and a gentle wind. As he left, Blanche finished tying her hair into a ponytail and stepped out of bed, getting dressed in the clothes she had worn the previous day. Finally decent, she left her bedroom and the house, seeing Kip waiting at the end of their small sidewalk.

"Let's go!" He was bursting with nervous energy, Blanche knew very well. The two siblings began into a fast jog, making it a few streets before they slowed a little to catch their breath.

"I bet I can beat you to that big rock," Blanche challenged, pointing out the rock to Kipper.

Nodding, he began their countdown. "Three… two… one!"

They took off, sprinting as fast as they could to reach the boulder. Kip pulled ahead almost at the end, slapping the rock with his hand as he passed it first.

"Haha, you lose Blanche!"

"Yeah, yeah," she shrugged it off. It never mattered to her that Kip was a better runner than she was. She didn't see a practical point to his pastime, but he was well on the path to be a star on the high school track team in a couple years.

They both climbed up onto the rock, breathing heavily as they listened to rustling branches.

"Blanche?" Kipper's voice had now turned vulnerable. Blanche looked at him, wondering what he wanted to ask her. "Are you going to get reaped today? You have a lot of entries.

Blanche had a total of thirty-five entries, because she had taken full tessera rations since she had been eligible, but Kipper did not need to know that.

"Yeah, I do have a lot of entries, but not so many more than lots of other girls," she reminded him. "My odds are just about the same as almost all the other girls my age. I'm going to be fine. Even if I do get picked, I'm pretty smart, so I can definitely make it back here." She was not at all confident of this, but she wouldn't tell him that either.

"I guess," he said, worry still in his tone. "I just don't want you to go away. You're the only one who runs with me."

Blanche gave him a tight hug. "I'm not going anywhere," she promised. There was a third thing she would not tell Kipper.

This was not a promise she could guarantee.

* * *

 _Jet Wyre, aged 8_

Jet sat at the large breakfast table in the city orphanage, the sounds of rowdy boys surrounding him as he tried to eat his porridge quietly. Breakfast always made him nervous, because all the boys were shouting to friends, or throwing bread, or having contests to see who could give the loudest belch.

Jet was a loner here at the orphanage, and he had only a couple of very close friends that did not live with him in this orphanage. Friends with families and pets and real homes. He envied them quite a lot, but he was too shy to ever tell his friends that.

Jet finished his oatmeal as quickly as he could and then ran upstairs to change into his clothes he would wear to the Reaping. He could not believe that he would be eligible to be sent into the arena for this reaping, but he knew his chances of getting chosen were extremely slim. There were so many other eligible boys, why would it be him.

Arriving in his room, he found that his best shirt, which was really nothing very special, had a new stain on it, he started to cry. He could never help it when he wanted to cry, it just happen. Lots of the boys made fun of him for this, but it wasn't truly his fault.

Wiping his tears, Jet swiped up his clothes and hurried into the bathroom before one of the other boys burst in and made him cry again.

An hour later, he was walking with the rest of the orphanage kids to the town square to sign in for the reaping. Jet made sure he was near the back of the pack, so that the other kids wouldn't see him cry when the check in people stuck his finger. He did his best to ignore the pain of the needle when the woman jabbed his finger, but it was not successful. Once again, Jet was crying. Determinedly not looking at the needle woman, Jet walked into the crowd and situated himself with a group of other eight year olds

Hopefully, he could stay out of some trouble, and keep himself from crying. If he couldn't it would be another embarrassing day in his largely embarrassing life.

* * *

 _Surdon Crees, aged_

As long as Surdon had been old enough to be required at the Reapings at age three, she remembered one thing about the possible tributes as they stood waiting for the fated tribute to be chosen: they all had looks of pure fear on their faces. Sure, you had the oddball seventeen or eighteen year old who either didn't seem to care if they went into the Games to die, or twelves barely old enough to realize that they might not return home alive if chosen.

Now Surdon was among that crowd of fearful children, three years earlier than she should have ever been entered in the first place. These Quarter Quells sure made life _interesting,_ as the Capitol citizens called it. Surdon just called it cruel. Who were they to send seven and eight year olds into the arena to die? That's all the kids were, fodder for the older tributes to mow down before moving on to the more challenging tributes.

The Capitol never cared what happened in the districts as long as they got their quotas of supplies from them, as long as they stayed docile and subdued under the oppression of the Hunger Games. Her parents were living proof of that.

Last year, while she had been walking home from school one afternoon with Aslyn and Greison, she smelled smoke on the air. She didn't think anything of it until she reached the end of her street, where you had a clear view of the huge power plant that took up the east part of the subdivision. The sight was always familiar to her, as always, but she quickly realized there was something off. The building was engulfed in flames, and the smoke was stronger here. The siblings hurried to get as close to the scene as she could before the responding Peacekeepers stopped them among a crowd of other onlookers.

It seemed to be hours before survivors came out of the building, although she later realized it couldn't have been more than twenty minutes or a half hour. She carefully scanned the fifty or so people leaving the building, gripping Aslyn's hand for all it was worth, and was relieved to see her mother, father, and Isack walking out. Isack and her father seemed to be supporting her mother. It later turned out that she had had a severe head wound, which would take several months to fully heal. Her father was mostly unscathed, but Isack had severe burns on his hands which rendered him practically useless for close to a month.

There were no reimbursements for injuries or deaths. Oh sure, the oldest children of those who didn't get out of the building, which had a total of thirty-seven casualties, recieved a Medal of Valor. What did that do for them, though? They couldn't sell it, as they weren't made out of anything but zinc or maybe copper. It was small comfort in the face of the tragedies.

Surdon was brought out of her reverie by the feedback from the mic onstage. It had been given a sharp _tap tap tap_ by the District Five escort, a man named Jensen Tyriul who made inane comments that he thought were clever but weren't at all.

"Welcome to the One hundred and twenty fifth Annual Hunger Games reaping. This year, four of you lucky children will have the opportunity to come to the capitol and participate in the fifth Quarter Quell." He chuckled at himself, as though congratulating himself for being _so_ witty. Surdon simply rolled her eyes. "Happy Hunger Games, and may the odds be ever in your favor."

He gave no further ceremony, but simply hurried on to the drawing of the four unlucky children who would be sent to die.

"Flare Whispworth, please come on up. You are the elder male tribute this year!" Jensen called through the crowd. A stirring came from the section of thirteen year olds across the aisle, and a blond boy with a shocked and puzzled expression on his friendly looking face. Surdon thought she recognized him, but disregarded it.

The reaping continued with the younger boy, Jet Wyre, a tiny kid no older than Surdon herself, who was shoved out into the aisle, where he fell into a heap and began to sob. She felt bad for the kid, because he seemed to already have lost. If he'd been smart, he would have acted brave for the cameras.

Jensen now moved over to the two girls bowls, filled with small white slips. Surdon knew that somewhere deep in the bowl, one slip with her own name was there. She hoped it would not be drawn.

The older girl was chosen first. Jensen called the name out for the crowd to hear it. "Blanche Alucard, come on up please!" A girl about sixteen years old came from the crowds. She looked like she did not want to be everyone's focus, but that would never have happened with her long red-brown hair. Blanche walked briskly up onto the stage, standing next to Flare but not looking at the younger boy.

Jensen moved over to the final bowl, and Surdon held her breath. A horrible, sick feeling welled up in her stomach, and she almost wanted to throw up. As the name was pulled, Surdon tried to convince herself. _It can't be me. I only have one entry. It's one slip of paper among the thousands of other possible girls._

The name was read to the crowd, and Surdon was hardly surprised. So much bad luck had befallen her family, it was only fitting.

"Surdon Crees is the second female tribute from District Five!" Jensen called to the deathly silent crowd. Surdon knew there was no hiding, so she went as fast as she dared go up onto the stage, standing silently on the other side of Blanche.

No one took any of their places. The wind was all that spoke for them.

* * *

 _Flare Whispworth, Aged 13_

Flare sat silently in the big armchair that was provided in the room they would say their goodbyes in. It was a nice room, certainly, but Flare didn't care about the finery. He was going to die, and pretty soon. Sure, he might outlast some of the littles, as they were beginning to be called at school, but against the likes of the careers? No way would he come back the Victor.

No one came for about twenty minutes, and Flare was beginning to worry. Would Dad not come to say goodbye? Would it be too painful for him? What about Piper? Surely she'd pluck up her courage and come say goodbye.

As he'd expected, his Dad eventually came. No mom, she had died several years ago, when Flare was only four. In many ways, he supposed this made it easier to cope with. He didn't have the memories his father did. You didn't miss what you never knew you had, right?

"Flare…" his dad whispered the words desperately, as if they were a spell that would free him from the Games and certain death. "Flare… I don't know how I'm going to make it without you… without anyone now."

Flare knew that this would bring his father to a very dark place, and Flare was going to take steps to make sure his dad would be okay.

"Dad, don't worry. I'm going to do my best. I think if I'm sneaky and I don't take risks, I can make it at least partway." He didn't tell his father his contingency plan, in the almost certain event of his death.

"I know you're smart and sneaky, Flare," his dad murmured. "But you're so pale. If you're in a forest, you'll need to hide carefully."

Gently, Flare hugged his father. They were very nearly the same height. "Don't worry, I'll do my best to stay safe. Maybe it'll help if I make a strong alliance, maybe with District 9. They're usually strong from the fields."

Flare's father took something out of his pocket. It was pale blue, and Flare immediately recognized it.

"Mom's quilt." he whispered. "You cut a piece off?"

"Well, I didn't think they'd let you have the whole blanket, because it would be an unfair advantage, so I just cut a little corner. I'll sew it back on in the future."

They continued to give each other false hope for a few more minutes, and then his father had to leave the room. The empty chair was filled after only a few minutes, however, as a young girl hurried in and wrapped Flare in a nearly suffocating embrace.

"Flare, this is totally unfair," she told him, staring at him solemnly. It seemed aws though she thought she were talking to a ghost. After all, that's basically all he was now. A ghost of Flare Whispworth. He knew he would not be returning to District Five, not outside of a wooden crate.

 **Whelp, there's another chapter, much quicker than even I anticipated. These characters have their strengths and weaknesses, but who will come out on top? Only time… and more chapters… will tell.**

 **Sorry for my completely sporadic updates, I'm completely at the mercy of my schedule. I have hope that District Six will be sooner than a month as well, but we will have to see. What do you think so far? We're nearly halfway through the reapings! Then the story can really start! I have many people to thank, but mostly my lovely beta reader, SadieAnnabetMellark. Everyone, go check her profile out!**

 **Also, a note for those who are confused as to what happened to Mora/Mariana. Specifically, her name change. This is due to a set of circumstances that I will not explain, but you may PM me if you are curious. I didn't get any angry messages about it, so I guess none of you really noticed.**

 **As usual, here are a few questions for you all to go ahead and answer! I really do appreciate those of you who answer them!**

 **Who do you like best from this district: Blanche, Jet, Surdon, or Flare?**

 **What do you think they will all place? Bloodbath? Final 8? In between? Do you think any are victor material?**

 **Will Blanche's workaholic antisocial ways make her an undesirable ally to others?**

 **Jet is a bit of a crybaby, but do you think the capitol will take some pity and sponsor him if he makes it past bloodbath?**

 **Surdon seems to be a bit of a pessimist, but will her skepticism be her greatest weapon in the arena?**

 **Flare seems to have simply given up, but do you think that he can pull himself together and at least make it through bloodbath?**

 **Do you all have any ideas for storylines for any of these guys?**


	9. UPDATE 2 READ NOW PLEASE!

**HI EVERYONE! I bet you all thought I was gone! It's been a few months since you heard from me, and I'm sorry for that. I had a lot to deal with during the summer, and so things are just beginning to calm down. I hope you all see that I'm back now, hopefully for good, and the next chapter will be out within a couple days at the latest. I've been having trouble with one character in particular, and I think you'll know who when you get to read it. Once I finish it, I think it'll be a breeze to finish the chapter and post it for you all to read! In the meantime, I have a couple of questions for you all to answer if you want to.**

 **1\. Who is still here reading this?**

 **2\. How are you all doing? Hopefully good!**

 **3\. Which characters so far do you think could have an alliance?**

 **4\. Which Character do you think so far has a chance to win?**


	10. District Six Reapings: Chasing The Sun

**As I promised, here's the next chapter, District Six, for your viewing pleasure! I hope you're all reading this, so please answer the questions I ask! It really helps me out, you have no idea!**

 **From this district, we have four wonderful young men and women. For our girls, we have Petra Overlock and Bexley Travers, created by a real life friend of mine. For our guys, we have Henry Green and Luka Hayes, who were submitted by Titanic X. Let me know what you think of this chapter, as well as the story as a whole! Let's go to District Six guys!**

 _District Six: Chasing the Sun_

 _They said this day wouldn't come_

 _We refused to run_

 _Chasing the Sun, The Wanted_

* * *

 _Henry Green, aged 16_

 _Henry had just arrived home from school for the day. He had a strange feeling of excitement that he couldn't quite explain. It was definitely unwarranted. Things were pretty difficult in the Green family, even though they had it better than lots of other people in the district. The district's main problem of the drug morphling had been expressly forbidden by Mr. Green, which left most of the family able to work. Almost everyone in the household worked from early morning to late in the afternoons in the District's mechanical assembly lines. Grandpa was the one who was at home in the evenings, who watched the brothers until their parents arrived home for dinner. Oswald was usually out with friends until late afternoon, so if was often just Henry and his grandfather. The two had plenty of fun together in the afternoons as Henry worked on homework and studied for upcoming tests._

 _That afternoon was no different, and yet Henry could_ feel _something different. Walking inside, he saw that his grandfather was at the table beginning to prepare dinner._

" _Hey, Grandpa!" the twelve year old called, slinging his knapsack into a chair and pulling a book out of it._

" _How was school, Henry?" Grandpa was always asking about this, and the answer was usually the same. Today, Henry had learned something that really interested him, though._

" _We learned about tank engines today!" he said excitedly. He flipped his book open to a page in the book, where a picture of the old engine sat. It wasn't made for beauty, that was certain. If anything, it was exceptionally ugly. Its powerful guns protruded from the top of it, and it's deep-treaded tires stood tall. It may not have been pretty, but it emanated power. Henry knew that it could mow enemies down in an instant with a few shots from the guns. It was frightening and mesmerizing at the same time._

 _Grandpa had an odd look on his face as he saw the picture. It was anguished, and yet also seemingly reminiscent. Henry didn't know whether it was a good or bad thing. It was an old look, one that Henry had never seen from his grandfather._

" _Grandpa, are you okay?"_

" _I… I'm fine, Henry," Grandpa wasn't quite convincing, but Henry let the matter drop, sitting in the chair and settling down to read in the book. He barely noticed his grandfather leaving the room to go outside. It was a few minutes later when he returned. "Henry, come here. I want to show you something."_

 _Henry stood from the chair, intrigued. Something in his grandfathers tone told him it was something that he would not show to Oswald. Following his grandfather, they went outside to the old shed. Henry hadn't been in there before, and his father had told him that someday he might find out what was there. It seemed today was that day._

 _They entered the shed, and Henry was hit with the musty smell of old metal and dried oil on concrete. In the middle of the shed was something that Henry could barely believe. It was on of the tanks from his book. Specifically, it was a M1A2 Abrams. They were no longer manufactured in Panem, which made the sight even more interesting. It was part of history, something from before Panem became a thing._

" _This is a very old tank," Grandpa had said. "It's very important that you keep this quiet. Do you understand?"_

 _Henry nodded. While it was not illegal for this tank to be here, it would be dangerous for someone who didn't understand its importance to find out. It would put the family under suspicion. "I promise."_

Henry had not broken that promise the last four years. No one aside from he and his grandpa, and possibly his parents, knew of the Abrams tanks existence out in their shed.

The year afterward, Henry had decided to get a tattoo of the tank on his shoulder. His parents hadn't been exactly thrilled at the idea, but they understood why he had done it. It was a memorial to history, as well as a memorial to his grandfather's secret. It was now also a token of Jacob Green's memory. He had died the previous year.

Henry was preparing for the day. It was Reaping day, his fourth one so far. He had four entries for his age, as well as fifteen extra as tesserae entries. He had not exactly wanted to have them, but his family needed the grain that these extra entries afforded.

Besides, this year it did not matter how many entries he had. He was going to volunteer this year, and he would win.

It had been around the same time he had gotten the tattoo that grandpa had begun teaching him how to shoot. Almost every afternoon, he would finish his school work and then they would go outside and practice with his grandpa's old gun. He had gotten pretty good, so much so that Henry thought it would be a simple thing to get rid of the careers, wait everyone else out, and then return home the victor. He wanted to complete what his grandpa had shown him- he wanted to repair the Abrams.

He could win this, because he had been trained. If that wasn't enough, he didn't know what would be.

* * *

 _Bexley Travers, aged 10_

Bexley and Bonnie were in the kitchen, preparing breakfast for themselves. It was something they liked to do together, but usually Bexley just did it, because Bonnie couldn't have cooked anything if her life depended on it.

"Got the margarine, Bon?" Bexley asked her sister. Bonnie handed her the block of butter, and Bexley smeared some over the flatcakes she had made. Of course they never had syrup, but the flatcakes were a treat that the fairly didn't often indulge in. Most of the district would never be able to have such delicacies even occasionally, but the Travers family were able to because they were hard-working and had managed to stay clear of the high drug rate of the rest of the district. Their parents went to work early and didn't get home until very late. They would be meeting them at the reaping as they had to work for a while in the morning before the event.

"Breakfast Harlow!" they called in unison, then laughed at their synchronicity. Soon enough, their older sister came into the kitchen with a smile as she began to serve plates.

Today was a quiet breakfast, which was unlike them. Of course, there was a very good reason for their lack of words, and eventually Harlow brought up the elephant in the room.

"I really don't think you'll be reaped, you guys," she said calmly, evenly looking Bexley in the eyes. "There are thousands of other girls who could be reaped besides you."

The logical argument had probably been given to all the other newly eligible tributes due to the age requirements. Bexley knew that this was true, of course, but also knew that it would have to be someone who stood on the stage and face the arena. No one said this, though. They all hoped to hold on to the possibility for as long as possible.

"I know," Bexley said, giving herself a burst of courage with the words. "Lots of other people."

The rest of breakfast passed quietly, and Harlow went to her room to get ready. Bexley and Bonnie were behind her soon enough, going to their own room. They had gotten their clothes prepared yesterday, and Bexley put on the pale gray dress her mother had picked out. The dress had been worn by Harlow at her first reaping, and was still in decent shape.

"Bex?" Bonnie timidly spoke, and the nerves from her usually unflappable sister made Bexley turn to face her. "What if it's me or you, or Harlow? I'm scared for us!"

They were the words that had been tugging at the back of her own mind, and Bexley couldn't come up with a good reply. "I don't really know if it's going to be us sis, but I do know that we have a small chance of actually getting chosen. That's what we need to think about. Besides, I'll volunteer for you if you get chosen."

Bonnie took a deep breath before she said, "And I will for you. Sister swear."

Bexley nodded. "Sister swear. Now let's head to the reaping, okay?

With a confident nod, Bonnie nodded. The sisters reunited with Harlow at the front door, and they headed to the reaping, where they would face their fates.

* * *

 _Luka Hayes, aged 7_

Luka was excited as he stood in the check in line with his father. He jumped with hyperactivity, so much so that Mr. Hayes had to grab his son's shoulders firmly to still him. Luka just couldn't help it. It felt like a celebration, even though he knew that it was far from it.

"Luka, you must calm down," he told his son. "You will draw attention and that isn't a good thing, do you understand?"

Luka heard his father's words, but didn't take them in completely. Of course he knew that the Peacekeepers weren't people you wanted to mess with, but their outfits seemed interesting to him. Many times he stopped himself from asking one of them if he could try on their helmet. He knew that life in District Six was overtaken with drug abuse and squalor. His own mother was among those who had succumbed to the epidemic, and had died two years ago. His father did his best raising him, and Luka knew he couldn't have been easy to handle, but he just couldn't help being excited about everything.

"All right, Dad," Luka said, smiling up at him. "I'll try better, I promise."

Instead of replying, his father simply sighed and kept them moving through the line. Eventually, they made it through the queue and Luka was left alone. He had never felt like this before. It was a strange feeling, being surrounded by as many people as he was. He wanted to do something to get attention, but before he could, he was herded towards the front of the crowd, along with all the other kids his age.

He looked around, trying to see any of his friends in the crowd. He wanted to see how they felt about being herded together like cows in a field. He didn't like it one bit.

He wasn't even paying attention to the stage until he heard the click of high heels across it. He looked up to see a woman all dressed in plum purple. Even her eyes seemed to shine with a violet tint as she observed the crowd of people before her. This was District Six's escort, Ambrosia Ryker.

"Welcome to the reaping ot the Fifth Quarter Quell!" she exclaimed to the sullen crowd. "I am so excited to be here with you all, choosing the four lucky young people who will be allowed to experience the luxury of the Capitol! I know you all must be as excited as I am to find out who it will be, so let's get started. May the odds be ever in your favor!"

With that, Ambrosia went to the left side of the stage, the girls bowls. They would be first, as always.

"For our first young lady, would Petra Overlock please come onto the stage?" The name settled over the crowd, and Luka heard a young girl's gasp. The people moved away from a girl around twelve years old with short red hair. She didn't seem like a weakling to Luka. Rather, she snatched her hand away from the Peacekeepers who came to retrieve her.

"I'm not going to run away!" she snapped at them, walking of her own volition to stand beside Ambrosia. The escort stared at the young girl beside her in puzzlement before she went to the second bowl.

"Our final young lady is Bexley Travers!" The crowds backed away from two girls around ten years old who looked to be twins. They were arguing.

"No, I'm not letting you do this," one of them said, turning to one of the girls near her. "Get her home later, please? At least find Harlow?"

The girl she addressed nodded solemnly, pulling the second twin into an embrace as the first walked up to the stage, stifling a few wayward tears as she stood beside Petra.

Ambrosia breathed hard before she moved to the guys bowls. "Our first young man is Steven Nicolls!"

Before the boy, whoever he had been, was able to come forward, an older boy, maybe sixteen, stepped forward out of the crowd. "I volunteer!"

He walked up onto the stage, staring steadily at Ambrosia as he approached.

"We have a volunteer, how wonderful!" she called happily. "What is your name, dear?"

"I'm Henry Green," he answered. "I'm planning to win, just so you know."

Unable to come up with a reply, Ambrosia simply went over to the final bowl, pulling out the name of the boy who would go to the Capitol.

"Our final tribute from District Six is Luka Hayes!"

* * *

 _Petra Overlock, aged 12_

Petra sat alone in the waiting room of the Justice Building, waiting for anyone who would come to see her. She knew that her parents and siblings would come, as well as her friends Aeni and Praria, who would surely drag Surtis along. She laughed at the thought of her best guy friend trying to avoid the girls pulling arms, thinking it was unmanly.

Shaking her head, she stood and looked out of the window. This was such an unfair situation. She couldn't believe that they had actually let that little boy, Luka, enter the Games. Petra got the feeling that he would be one of the first to be killed in the Games, unless that volunteer guy, Henry Green, took it especially to heart and protected him, and she didn't know him and couldn't say.

She turned quickly at a rap on the door, seeing it open to reveal her three older siblings. Verity, Rose, and Nathan stood together, each looking more grave than the last. "Hey Petra," Verity called, leading the others into the room.

"Oh, come on," Petra tried to joke. "You guys look as if you'll never see me again." Verity gave her a look, and she dropped the act. "Sorry. I know. Just didn't want our last moments together to be so serious."

"It's okay, Pet Rock," Rose said, smiling wanly. "Don't worry about it. Do what you can to make it…"

She didn't finish, and Petra didn't even need to hear it. Instead, she said, "How many times do I have to tell you not to call me Pet Rock, _Melrose?"_ She knew that her sister hated her full name, and felt she deserved to tease her about it one last time. She then stopped trying to joke, asking, "Hey, where are Mom, Dad, and the kids?" Petra called all her younger siblings 'kids', even though Hemeia was only a couple years younger.

"Mom and Dad didn't want to get them upset with the goodbyes, so they're taking them home. They sent us to say goodbye for everyone," Nathan answered.

Petra knew that it would be for the best that her parents had taken them home, especially Belize, who had taken to clinging to Petra as much as possible. It had been diffficult enough to get her to agree to stay with Mom while all the others were herded into their sections. She didn't want to start crying and appear red-faced when the cameras filmed them getting on the train later that afternoon. She had bad enough chances as it was, she thought that if she could appear strong in front of the cameras, some people would want to help her and give her sponsor money.

"I get it," Petra said, smiling without much warmth. As much as she did understand, she wished she'd had a chance to get to say goodbye to her parents at least. "I'm glad you guys are here, anyway."

"Mom gave us this for you to take into the arena," Verity said, pulling something out of her dress pocket and handing it to Petra.

Petra examined the silver thing in her palm. It was a butterfly shaped pin, decorated with lots of colorful little jewels that glinted in the thin light from the open window.

"She said that she always had it with her when she went through the reapings, and hopes it'll bring you some luck in the arena," Rose told her, pinning the butterfly to her dress collar.

Petra thought it was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen, and she fingered it with interest. "It's beautiful. Make sure you tell her I love it, all right? And that I love her?"

"Of course we will, you nitwit," Nathan replied, ruffling her hair lovingly.

There was a rap on the door, and a Peacekeeper stuck their head in. "You guys are done. Come on."

The four siblings embraced tightly, and now Petra couldn't help a few hot tears that fell down her cheeks. "I love you guys," she murmured. "I'll try my best and get back here, don't worry."

"Of course you will," Verity said, smiling through her own tears. "We love you too."

The three of them left quickly before they were dragged out, and Petra was left alone. She had so many siblings, it was extremely rare that she had any time alone. Usually she cherished every five minutes she was able to have to herself. Now, however, she wished she could summon her siblings back to her, keep them with her.

She was alone, and she didn't think she liked it.

 **As promised, here's District Six! Bet you all thought I'd end up being another month after my UPDATE chapter, huh? You doubters!**

 **Anywho, hope you guys like the chapter! We're halfway through the reapings! I can't believe it! After this, I'm changing things up a bit. Reaping chapters in any SYOT always bore me unless something unique happens, so here's what I'm planning to do: a reaping POV for each someone in each District, not one for every tribute. It'll save me time and help get through the reapings faster and on to the actual story. Unless you guys absolutely hate this idea, that'll be my next chapter. I hope to have it by sometime next week at the latest unless something absolutely crazy happens.**

 **As usual, here are your questions for this chapter-**

 **Which character do you like the most from this District? Who do you dislike?**

 **Now that we're halfway through, are there any interesting alliances you could see happening? Any who will probably be a loner except for the kid?**

 **What do you think about Henry volunteering? Quite unusual for a District Six guy. How do you think his family's military history will drive him throughout the Games, if at all?**

 **Bexley seems quite mature for her age, but will that even matter in the long run?**

 **Luka has his head up in the clouds, but do you think he can come down to earth long enough to survive the Games?**

 **Petra has a lot to get back home for, but will her motivations help her overcome her age hurdle?**

 **Love you all, and I hope you all have a great day! Please leave a review, and spread the word of this story if you can! I'd love more readers!**


	11. FINAL PLACINGS

Guys... I'm sorry I can't continue this anymore. I've gotten super busy now... again. I didn't want to keep you all in suspense though, so I am gonna give you where they would be placed if I continued. Here goes.

District Five Female Child: Surdon Crees, aged 9, G. Hannelius

District Nine Female Child: Veronica Little, aged 9, Georgie Henley

District Eleven Male Child: Colin Bates, aged 7

District One Male: Nero "Torch" Blaster, aged 18, Jonathan Lipnicki

District Eleven Female Child: Dalia Khalani

District Ten Female Child: Darcy Crockett, aged 9, Emily Carey

District Seven Male Child: Banyan Holt aged 7, Levi Miller

District Twelve Female Child: Fawn Larson, aged 10,

District One Female Child: Belle Russeu, aged 9, Lara Robinson

District Five Male Child: Jet Wyre, aged 8, Louis Hynes or Cameron Boyce

District Twelve Male: Azarias Lottar, aged 16, Orlando Bloom

Female: Marie Stein, aged 14, Lizzy Greene

District Four Female Child: Cove Scupper, aged 11, Bella Thorne

District Six Male: Henry Green, aged 16, Freddie Highmore

District Twelve Male Child: Carlo Irving, aged 10, Max Records

District Seven Female Child: Acacia Sandwood, aged 11, Ariel Gade

District Six Female: Petra Overlock, aged 12, Maggie Jones

District Two Female Child: Persephone Salind, aged 11, Avalon Robbins

District Eleven Female: Anna Rivera

District Eleven Male: Bellmey Whitford, aged 18, Suraj Sharma

District Six Female Child: Bexley Travers, aged 10, Mia Talerico

District Seven Female: Willow Beech, aged 18, Alexandra Daddario

District Nine Male Child: Tyre Nash, aged 8, Davis Cleveland

District Seven Male: Elm Arce, aged 17, Tristan Leabu

District Two Female: Calaena Galis, aged 17, Katherine Langford

District Two Male Child: Leo Dallwoods, aged 10, Jason Drucker

District One Female: Velvetina Silvette, aged 17, Molly Ringwald

District Eight Female: Breeland Wildfire, aged 13, Jenna Ortega

District Three Male Child: Tek Palmer, aged 8, Freddie Boath (Mummy Returns)

District Four Male Child: Ayu Kuang, aged 10, Lee Hyung Wu

District Eight Male Child: Eddie Menlo, aged 9, Dakota Goyo

District Eight Male: Delian Rutherford, aged 17, Tidiou M'Baye

District Six Male Child: Luka Hayes, aged 7, Thomas Sangster

District Ten Male: Clay Colton, aged 17

District Three Male: Quest Warez, aged 15, Brenton Thwaites

District One Male Child: Wax Cosmos, aged 11, Tyler James Williams

District Two Male: Marcus Vippina, aged 16, Alex Lange

District Eight Female Child: Calico Chambray, aged 11, Jodelle Ferland

District Twelve Female: Tansy Nills, aged 17, Winona Ryder

District Three Female Child: Xena Sedala, aged 11, Malina Weissman

District Four Male: Adrian Tang, aged 18, Karan Brar

District Five Male: Flare Whispworth, aged 13, Casey Simpson

District Ten Female: Dove Tartan, aged 16, Dove Cameron

District Four Female: Mariana Hurley-Bellus, aged 18, Tori Kelly

District Ten Male Child: Horus Jabari, aged 9

District Five Female: Blanche Alucard, aged 16, Annalise Basso

District Nine Male: Maize Hackney, aged 17, Dylan Sprayberry

District Nine Female: Linea Codon, aged 14, Chloe Moretz

Number 1 is first death and 48 is wiAs you see, the plan was for it to be final 3 of the Nines and Blanche. Maize killed Blanche while protecting the younger Linea, and suffered mortal wounds himself. Linea is our winner, one of the youngest.

Feel free to PM me if you want more details about your characters death. Again, sorry for doing this but I just cant continue this.


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